Traitor?
by Ally823
Summary: While on a mission, Sam is taken captive by a Goa'uld System Lord. She's found nearly a year later and 'rescued' by her teammates. Trouble is, no one asked if she wanted rescuing... SamOC
1. Til Death Do Us Part

**Title:**_ Traitor?_

**Summary:**_ While on a mission, Sam is taken captive by a Goa'uld System Lord. She's found a year later and "rescued" by her teammates. Trouble is, no one asked her if she wanted rescuing. Sam/OC_

**Spoilers:**_ Singularity, Fire and Water, In the Line of Duty, Maternal Instinct, Summit, Last Stand, Meridian, and Fallen._

**Disclaimer:**_ I own nothing, nada, zip, zilch. Ah, except for Zeus/Jaesin, Raevyn, Shoshannah, Ariana, and all the other various characters we all know never appeared in the television show._

* * *

**Chapter 1**

"Trees," Sam heard Jack mutter.

"Well, what do you expect?" asked Daniel. "It's been four years and we don't usually encounter anything but."

Sam smirked. Throughout SG-1's years as a team, Jack and Daniel's bantering had become a familiar constant. She would have been worried if they had gone through a mission without it. She was debating about joining or not; they might stop or brush off any comment she might make if she did.

Suddenly, she shivered involuntarily. Despite the fact the gate was surrounded by numerous evergreen trees (a forest, go figure), the chilly breeze still managed to cut through. The trees were a dark, rich, pine green and their tops swayed violently in the upper breeze. Luckily, the wind wasn't strong enough to push past the thick, sturdy trunks. Sure they still felt it, but nowhere near as bad as the tree tops.

Even so, Sam had a cold and dark feeling in the pit of her stomach not brought on by the planet's wind. She'd had it ever since the briefing but no one else seemed perturbed by a gut feeling, so she never said a word. Even if she did, she wondered how likely they would be to turn back, like every instinct told her to do.

"But you'd think Hammond'd give a break. Maybe let us gate to a nice beach…." Her CO's words cut through her thoughts.

Daniel sighed in exasperation. "Ah, Jack…remember what happened _last_ time we were at a beach?"

"Yeah well," responded Jack, "that was just once. Not the kind of beach I was thinking about anyways. Nem creeped me out."

Sam picked up the thread, "I have to admit, sir, it _was_ a nice eulogy."

"Ah!" Jack interrupted. "I thought we weren't gonna talk about that anymore!" The statement was followed by a fierce mock glare.

Sam and Daniel exchanged mischievous grins.

The team kept walking, looking for any sign of intelligent life. The M.A.L.P. hadn't indicated anything to suggest there was any intelligent life, but that was usually when the team was captured or almost killed in being chased off by the locals. Sam hoped that this was one of those times and that the team actually could have a simple and safe mission. The feeling in the pit of her stomach, however, indicated otherwise.

They walked the perimeter around the Stargate but still found nothing to signify any life at all, intelligent or primitive.

Sam was surprisingly beginning to miss the Jaffa fights and the danger that they normally found on planets like this. Glancing at her teammates, she saw that Jack was showing his disappointment; his eyes were flitting about in the hopes of some action. Sam hid a smirk. Daniel, on the other hand, looked like he was in deep thought. His eyes held a vacant expression and Sam didn't feel like distracting him. Teal'c still had the same impassive expression on his face, but Sam could see wariness in his eyes. He didn't trust this place either. That put Sam on hyper-alert.

"Think we should just go back and tell the good general this planet was a bust?" Jack asked, a whine just barely entering his voice.

"Aw, come on, Jack," joked Daniel. "We're supposed to have a week here. Think about it. Seven days of worrying about absolutely nothing."

"I would not be so sure, Daniel Jackson," said Teal'c, glancing around slowly and uneasily.

Sam's heart jumped. So someone else _did_ have a bad feeling about coming here. _Figures it'd be the person who wouldn't show it,_ she thought with a tad bit of grumpiness.

"Why?" Daniel asked.

"It is just a…feeling. I do not know how to describe it—"

"That's okay, T," Jack interrupted. "Anyone else feeling a little…?"

Sam didn't say a word. Let them think Jaffa skills had saved them again. She knew they wouldn't have listened to her if she had said it first, unless Teal'c seconded it. What would be the point? They would still have trusted the Jaffa instincts over hers. She toyed with the idea of what would have happened if she had said it first. The colonel would have to apologize to her and the next time they would trust her instincts as well. Sam immediately shrugged the idea off. Even in her head, the whole situation she had just conjured was petty and stupid.

"Alright then. We'll head back and tell General Hammond that the planet didn't really sit well with us," Jack said. "Nothing's here, so I think we can block it, right? Carter?"

"Uh, right, sir. I'll talk to Walter," Sam answered.

The gate wasn't very far away so Sam allowed her attention to fully wander. Bantering with Jack and Daniel was fun and it made her feel like one of the guys, but she also got the impression that they would prefer to do it by themselves and her interference wasn't welcome. She didn't like to show her emotions so much and didn't want to share how she felt with one of the guys, especially since this was really the only issue she had with them. _Or was it?_ a part of her asked. She had to admit that sometimes it looked like they'd prefer she be there but have it one of those be-seen-and-not-heard situations. All she wanted was to be treated like one of the guys, but if they really did feel that way…

Sam shook her head. _If they really feel that way, then it just confirms that I'll always be the girl. It doesn't matter that I've pulled my weight as much as any of them. I'll always just be The Girl._

Then she wanted to laugh at her pettiness. This really was so stupid. She was getting all worked up over _feeling left out_. She felt like such a five-year-old.

They neared the gate and all hell broke loose. Staff weapon fire came from all directions, leaving the team with little preparation for a defense.

"Daniel, dial it up!" shouted Jack. "Teal'c, Carter, help me cover him!" The three teammates stood back to back and fired off into the forest while Daniel hurriedly dialed the SGC and put in the GDO code. Suddenly, a wild shot hit Daniel in the side.

"Daniel!" cried Jack. The gate was activated.

"Go!" called Sam. If she would admit it to herself, she knew she was doing this just to prove she wasn't the weak girl, but she didn't and Jack nodded, signaling Teal'c to get Daniel and hurry.

Just before going through, Teal'c and Jack paused and turned around in time to see Sam struck full-on in the chest with a well-aimed blast.

"Carter!" Jack cried and started back but Teal'c somehow managed to hold him back with one arm.

"O'Neill" was all he had to say. Jack turned back around and gave Teal'c a despairing look but obediently went through the gate, seeing no room for argument on the Jaffa's face.

- oOoOoOo -

Sam was so busy firing off in one general direction that she forgot her teammates weren't there to defend her six anymore. When she finally did remember, she wheeled a quick one-eighty, and to her horror, saw that Daniel was bleeding profusely from the side. Her attention wavered long enough for a shot to get past her defense and hit her full in the chest.

She barely felt the impact as she toppled to the ground like a puppet cut from its strings. Her surroundings darkened and she knew no more.

- oOoOoOo -

As soon as Jack emerged on the other side, Jack shouted, "Close the iris!"

"But what about Major Carter?" asked a confused Sergeant Harriman.

"That wasn't a suggestion, Sergeant!" Jack retorted.

The sergeant saw Jack was deathly serious, so he obediently complied with the order. A final blast made it through and harmlessly hit the wall beneath the control room. The gate shut down a couple of seconds after the iris was fully closed and Hammond made his appearance.

"Where's Major Carter?" he asked.

"Sh-she's dead, sir," Jack replied.

Hammond let that sink in before asking, "And Doctor Jackson?"

"He will be if Janet doesn't stitch him up."

"Medical team to the gate room," Hammond ordered and within a couple minutes, Janet and her team met the three remaining members of SG-1.

"Put him on the gurney. Gently," Janet ordered. Teal'c obeyed and gently laid the unconscious doctor on the gurney. After quick observation of Daniel, Janet said, "Give him some anesthetics and get him into surgery. We need to stop any bleeding and get that wound stitched up immediately."

"Yes, ma'am," responded one of her subordinates. They quickly raced off to the infirmary.

Before she left, Janet said, "He should be alright. I just want to make sure it doesn't get any worse. General." Janet gave a quick respectful nod and rushed off.

"We'll wait to find out about Doctor Jackson, then we'll debrief," said Hammond, knowing any other order would be refused. That and he too wanted to find out how the young man under his command fared.

"Yes, sir," responded Jack. This was going to be one of the worst debriefings he'd have to attend.

-oOoOoOo -

The tunnel was so long, Sam observed. If she squinted, a luminescent white light flickered somewhere up ahead. She frowned, wondering why she was here and not back at the SGC debriefing with her team. Looking down to peruse herself, she noted her off-world uniform gave way to a large, gaping burnt spot on her chest. The frowned deepened and creases on her forehead appeared. Why didn't she remember being shot with what looked like a staff weapon?

Her gaze moved upward again, searching the tunnel ahead. The light winked lazily at her. She glanced over her shoulder. A black abyss yawned to greet her.

Deciding the light looked like the better option, she slowly shuffled forward, hindered by every muscle in her body protesting fiercely. She gasped in wonder and surprise as various memories from her life appeared on the tunnel walls. Further traversing down the tunnel revealed some of Jolinar's memories as well. Not having lived these, she had little to no idea what they meant.

_Light at the end of the tunnel,_ she mused, training her eyes forward again. _I guess that means I'm dead._ As she continued on, she barely thought about this strange emotional detachment she seemed to be experiencing. All that mattered was walking on; she was compelled to reach the end.

Oddly enough, the light never got closer, and soon the memories faded, the walls were swallowed by blackness, and the little white light blinked out.

- xxx -

The first thing she became aware of was a bright light on the other side of her eyelids. The second thing was a strange humming noise that she couldn't place. Voices spoke inside her head:_ "The resistance—the Tok'ra—they don't use the sarcophagus. It does bad things to you. It changes your mind. It takes something from you. I kept hearing…Teal'c, what is 'kalach'?" _Teal'c's reply:_ "It means 'one's soul.'"_

Sam's eyes shot open. She was in a sarcophagus. The top began to open and she was about to shoot out the gap as soon as it wide enough, but she realized in time that she wasn't wearing any clothes.

The thought made her shiver because that meant someone—some _strange_ person—stripped her of _all_ of her clothes and put her in a sarcophagus. She felt annoyed and violated.

Cautiously, she sat up and, once her eyes adjusted, saw that the room was completely empty except for a bench and some clothes on it. To her irritation, there was nothing to wrap herself in so that she could go to the bench without having to worry about someone coming in and seeing her like…like _this_.

She briefly waited, and still no one came in, so she scurried over to the bench to see what the articles of clothing consisted of. None of her military issue clothes were there but there was a breast band—there's no way the large, round band of silky fabric could be called a bra—and a navy silk tunic. There was also a pair of underwear and tan breeches. Another quick glance around the room showed no other articles of clothing so she quickly donned what was there. It fit well and was surprisingly comfortable, except for the tunic; it showed way too much chest for Sam's liking.

Her foot bumped something under the bench. Bending down, she saw a pair of dark blue slippers. The floor wasn't too cold but she decided she would prefer to have something on her feet in case she was able to escape and had to run through any rough terrain. If that was the case, she'd still prefer the slippers to bare feet.

No one came to greet her in five or ten minutes so she began pacing. Now she understood why the sarcophagus was so addictive. She felt strong, alive, _invincible._ She quickly shook her head and forced the thought from her mind. They never had given Daniel enough credit when he had become addicted. But for someone like him to succumb to it….

After an hour, Sam found out what the bench was for. No one had come for her yet and she was getting tired of being on her feet. She sat down and looked up at the ceiling. Tiles. They would be really easy to count if she took one of several mathematical shortcuts but she didn't know how much longer she would be here so she began to count them one-by-one.

- xxx -

…_1,795…1,796…1,797…I wonder if someone's even coming at all? One thousand, seven hundred…dammit, I lost count! _Sam had been in the cell for three hours since she had woken up. She was getting very bored with counting tiles; it was her twelfth time through. Sighing, she looked around the room…again.

The room looked like it had belonged to a ha'tak vessel but the inertial dampeners worked so damn well on those things that she couldn't tell if she was on the ground, in the atmosphere, flying normal speed, or flying at hyperspeed.

Finally, in frustration, she walked over to where she knew the door was and began to pound it as hard as she could. Even with the effects of the sarcophagus receding, she still felt an immeasurable amount of strength; maybe if she hit it hard enough, she could break down the door.

Rationality kicked in and she ceased her furious attack on the door.

No one even answered. In a flash of renewed anger, she lashed out with her foot and kicked it as hard as she could. That was a huge mistake. The impact jarred her foot and she felt two, maybe three, toes break.

"Dammit!" she hissed, clutching her ankle and checking the damage. Spikes of pain lanced up her foot and made her eyes water. Out of sheer willpower, she got up and hobbled back to the bench and began to rub her ankle. Her entire foot hurt.

Then the door opened and two Jaffa entered. They motioned that she follow them.

"I can't," she said. One of the Jaffa came forward menacingly. "I don't have a symbiote to heal my foot if I bust it up, so so-rry if I can't get up and prance off to see your god," she elaborated, annoyed. She bit her tongue, wondering what the hell was wrong with her. Deciding the Jaffa were more important at the moment, she watched them cautiously.

The Jaffa dropped their menacing pretense and walked over. Standing on either side of her, they gently (for Jaffa, anyway) picked her up and escorted her out by holding onto her arms so she could use them as support to walk. She limped along using her good foot. They allowed themselves to be used as crutches up until they entered the bridge. Sam was steered to the front of the Goa'uld's throne and instantly released.

"Kneel before your god" came the inevitable command. Instead of hitting her knees, they pushed on her shoulders and used force to get her down. It didn't take much considering her foot made her comply. She bit the inside of her cheek to stop several choice curses from making themselves heard.

To distract herself, she studied the Goa'uld. He had silky brown hair pulled back into a neat ponytail at the nape of his neck. His skin was a sickeningly beautiful shade of golden honey, tanned from genuine sunlight. Emerald green eyes were perched above elegantly high cheekbones. His mouth was quirked in a mocking smile and his eyebrows were raised in amusement. It was then Sam realized she was gawking. She scowled.

He grinned in response. It was a warm, million watt grin that didn't reach his eyes, which were shining in silent triumph.

He stood up and walked toward her. She gazed defiantly into his eyes. This only seemed to amuse him, which, in turn, ticked her off even further. "Who are you?" she demanded, expecting a sharp reprimand. None was forthcoming.

"It depends," he replied silkily. It was an interesting combination with his Goa'uld voice. "I am known to many as Zeus. Others know me as Jupiter.

"I notice," he went on, "that my Jaffa provided a walking aid as well as an escort. May I ask what happened? Not many are known to come out of a sarcophagus with an injury they did not have going in."

Sam was vaguely surprised he showed some interest towards her well-being. Then again, it depended on what he had in mind for her. If she was going to be a host for a prospective queen… She forced her mind away from those thoughts and back to Zeus's question. "I got bored," she answered. His brow rose incredulously, so she continued, "Well, when one is stuck in a box for three hours, one tends to want to get out. A person can count the ceiling tiles so many times before they go out of their mind with boredom. I wanted out but apparently your 'guards' here wanted me to suffer before I could leave." She held her breath. The sarcophagus was _definitely_ having some negative side effects on her. Her tongue was way too loose. Now she wondered if more than just a couple of toes would be broken before she was thrown into a cell.

His eyes flashed, but his anger wasn't directed at her. Her two escorts stood firm, but Sam could see they were scared shitless. "Fools!" he growled. "I gave you a simple order. Explain to me why you found it so difficult to follow."

Sam's eyes narrowed. This was different. What had they been ordered to do, exactly? Why wasn't she being punished for talking to a "god" like that?

"Our sincerest apologies, my lord," one of the Jaffa murmured. "We did not realize her time within the sarcophagus was finished."

"Oh?" Zeus said quietly.

"We will not make such a grievous error again," the other added. Sam suspected the error had more to do with the hole they'd dug themselves into, rather than their forgetting about her.

"Oh, I trust you won't," Zeus smiled. Sam winced internally at the cold, malicious enjoyment in his eyes.

The Jaffa froze, suddenly very closely resembling statues. Their eyes were locked on the ground and their knuckles were white as they gripped their staff weapons.

Zeus gave them a disgusted look and turned back to Sam. "Do you have a name?"

Her eyes widened minutely in surprise. She had assumed that every Goa'uld in the Milky Way had heard of the infamous SG-1 and what they looked like. If he didn't know it was her, she might as well keep it that way, so she used her middle name. "Lynn."

"Lynn?" he repeated dubiously with a hint of mockery. "Well then, _Lynn, _where do you come from? My Jaffa tell me they saw three of your companions leave through the Chappa'ai."

"My people are nomadic," she lied, keeping her face straight, the words slipping easily from her mouth. "We travel to different planets and trade technology that we find. I have no idea where they would be now. They'd've definitely moved on as soon as I was kil-captured in case you used your technology to revive me and force me into revealing our previous location."

He stared into her eyes for a moment. "It is in your best interest to be telling the truth," he said warningly. "Is your answer honest?"

"Yes." They had another stare down before Zeus seemed to believe her.

"Why do you have no fear of your god?" he asked, amusement back in his voice.

"I've met too many of you and seen too many other Goa'uld die to believe you're gods," replied Sam. She seemed to be able to get away with back talking and speaking disrespectfully, so why not try baiting him? "I've even killed one of two myself," she threw in with a shrug.

That amused him even more, to her frustration. "I cannot convince you otherwise if you are truly set in your beliefs," he said. Sam's eyes widened again in surprise. He laughed. "You appear to be shocked at my decision not to punish you. I am not stupid like the others who think that by severely disciplining you, you will believe they are your gods."

Sam was confused. Zeus was like no Goa'uld she had ever met. He was kinder in his own way, for one, but she could tell his temper was very fierce if provoked. What's more, she actually had the right to not believe he was her god and she wasn't hit in the face for it.

"What do you want with me?" she demanded.

"I want a queen and you appear to be suitable enough." He walked forward and cupped her face. Her skin tingled with the contact. She stayed still by a great force of will. This time it was his eyes that widened in amazement. "You were once a host," he said, obviously shocked.

Sam glared back as he drew his hand away and the tingling ceased.

Zeus laughed again and stood up, motioning the Jaffa pull Sam up, too. "You need not fear I will make you a host again. Unless, of course, you refuse my offer." His eyes flashed dangerously.

"What are my full options?" asked Sam weakly, hating her situation more and more. Pain from her foot was making her dizzy.

"One moment," Zeus said. He picked up an object from a stand next to his throne. When he turned and straightened, Sam saw it was a healing device. He approached her and bent down. Warmth briefly bathed her foot as the healing device worked its magic. Gingerly, she tested her weight on both feet once Zeus was upright again.

"If you willingly take my offer," replied Zeus, not wasting time returning to the earlier subject, "you will keep your independence, your mind will not know the horrors of being a host to a Goa'uld, and you would have the rank of a queen—" he laughed cruelly "—or you could become a host and have no say in anything anymore."

Sam felt faint.

"What say you?" Zeus asked.


	2. The Die is Cast

**Chapter 2**

"So why me? Why am I the one you want for your queen?" Sam stalled.

Zeus smiled, knowing full well what she was doing. "You are beautiful and you have spirit. That is more than I can say for any previous queens or their hosts."

"What happened to them?" Sam asked. She assumed he killed them, but wasn't sure if she wanted her suspicion confirmed or disproven. Figuring he wouldn't try anything to kill her for the moment, she took a step forward.

He smirked. "They died." Sam swallowed nervously, as her throat was suddenly very dry. He tone clearly indicated the deaths were very painful for the poor women, pleasurable for Zeus. "But on my original subject, do not fear, for you need not worry about giving me an answer now. But I do expect it by the end of our meal. Please, take…Lynn to her bathing room." Zeus turned around and began to walk away. Before he got too far, he paused. "Oh, and Lynn, do not refuse my invitation. I know that so much time in the sarcophagus tends to make one hungry. And," he added, "there is nowhere for you to go, so do not think about escaping my vessel." He continued walking away.

Sam turned to face the Jaffa before she saw where Zeus vanished but she did hear the sound of a "door" opening and closing.

Instead of leading her away again, one of the Jaffa barked a command in Goa'uldish and a door behind Sam opened again. She turned to see two pretty female Jaffa walking gracefully toward her. She noticed that their eyes were downcast and they walked forward hesitantly, yet still managing to do it with grace.

From what she could see, they were twins. Their caramel skin was the same shade and gleamed in the light of Zeus's "throne room." Both wore a simple tunics and plain ankle-length skirts.. They each wore a different color, one a rose pink and the other a periwinkle blue. Another difference was one had a waist-length, jet black waterfall of hair; the other had hair just over shoulder-length that cascaded beautifully over her thin shoulders. Their almond-shaped eyes fit into high, proud cheekbones.

The one wearing periwinkle looked up but still refused to meet Sam's eyes. "My goddess," she said. Sam started. She suddenly had a violent urge to shake the girl and order her not to call _anyone_ a goddess but she wasn't in the mood to be smacked around by very muscular male Jaffa that outnumbered her. "Our lord Zeus asked that we be your personal servants. I am Kaelyn and my sister is Kaeleck."

Sam smiled, not quite sure how to handle two people who already worshiped her as a goddess. The thought made her sick with horror. These people weren't acting. They truly thought she was a goddess and worshipped her, and not out of willingness. People were now forced to follow _her_. This was exactly what SG-1 was fighting against. She uneasily mused about what Teal'c would say if he knew she was about to join the ranks of the one who had once oppressed him.

"Please, Goddess," whispered Kaelyn with wide hazel eyes. "My lord has asked that me and my sister find suitable clothes for you to dine in tonight."

_How can they tell time?_wondered Sam. If she correctly interpreted what Zeus said before, they were in space where, technically, there was no way to effectively differentiate day from night. She nodded, however, and the sisters led the way out. Sam was aware of the guards following them, probably in case she tried to do anything sudden and rash.

A few minutes later and two floors up (at least that was what Sam assumed, judging by the layout of this level), they stopped in front of a section of wall. If Sam looked closely, she was able to see a tiny crack that was in the shape of a door. Kaelyn touched a symbol on the wall and the door opened.

The room inside was dimly light. When Sam's eyes adjusted, she saw that there was a huge bathtub that reminded her more of a hot tub. On a shelf just above the far end of the bathtub was an array of lotions and what Sam assumed were bath gels. On the other end was what looked like a fairly modern dressing room in the sense it had a mirror, a rack for clothes (this one happened to be full), and a small dais for Sam to stand on.

"Please, my lady," Kaelyn whispered. "We do not have much time to prepare you. Take off your clothes and Kaeleck will put the appropriate gels into the water while I retrieve a towel and robe."

"Uh…" said Sam, flushing. She was highly reluctant to endure the same violation she felt when she emerged from the sarcophagus..

Kaelyn gazed at her in cautious amusement. "My lady?"

"S-Lynn, please," said Sam absently. _At least the guards were decent enough to stay_ outside_ the room,_she thought sarcastically.

"Yes, my lady," Kaelyn replied, averting her eyes from Sam's face again.

Sam sighed and walked to the edge of the tub. Up close, she noticed that it was filled almost to the top with warm water that gave off a faint scent of honey almond. She took off her clothes and quickly slipped into the warm water. True to her sister's word, Kaeleck quickly, and efficiently put the "appropriate" gels into the water.

"H-how old are you?" Sam asked, trying to start a conversation. Her voice echoed softly through the room.

"Sixteen, my lady," the girl replied.

_Damn,_ thought Sam. That was too young in her book. Then again, she could easily picture Daniel telling her about many cultures when children were married and parents at a younger age than that. That was another question she you have to ask Zeus: what had happened to her friends? Did they ever return? Not that she expected him to answer truthfully.

The more immediate dilemma pulled Sam away from her mental queries about her teammates. She _did not_ want to be a host or this guy's queen. The biggest question she had on that was, why didn't Zeus just make her a host? Not that she was complaining, but it still struck her as very…unusual.

Sam jumped as she felt something touching her head. "It's alright, Goddess," she heard Kaeleck say. "You look as if you have been in a fight in the mud; your hair is filthy. I am merely washing the dirt and grime out."

Sam relaxed slightly. Tonight, she would tell Zeus she would be his queen; a tiny white lie. There was going to be no way she would allow herself to be a queen, which left only one option. Sam smiled grimly as a plan began to formulate.

---------------

"Please try this one, my lady," asked Kaelyn. The girl held up a floor-length, sky blue dress.

Sam slipped it on. Out of the many dresses she'd tried on so far, this one fit the best. It was a silky material that clung seemingly tightly to her body, leaving little for the imagination. It had shoulder straps and a very low-cut collar. The skirt was long and, blessedly, loose.

"This one fits the best so far," Sam admitted reluctantly. Sensing the source or her unease, Kaelyn quickly handed Sam a wrap matching the dress. Sam smiled briefly in response.

She was standing on the dais in the center of the dressing room, trying not to scream in frustration. She already didn't want to be here, let alone trying on dresses to appease the only person in the world who she _didn't_ want to attract. The twins took a few more moments to adjust the dress before asking Sam to walk to the vanity area to make Sam look even more like a sign that said "I'M A SLUT AND I WANT SEX."

That was another thing she didn't want Zeus to even think about. She sighed. If she didn't sabotage the engines tonight and make the whole vessel explode, that would be her fate. She would do a lot to ensure she or her friends would survive, but between marriage with a full package or death, she knew which one to choose.

Kaelyn worked on her make-up while Kaeleck attempted to style Sam's short hair. A half an hour later, Sam was ready to "impress" Zeus.

"Does this please you, my lady?" Kaeleck asked. Sam had yet to convince either of them to look her in the eye and not call her "goddess" or "my lady."

Sam looked into a nearby mirror. She had to admit to herself that the two girls did an excellent job on making her look seductive. The employees at Clinique could only hope they came close to doing people's make-up as well as Kaelyn. It was possible to tell Sam was wearing make-up but it was so subtle that it almost looked natural. Glancing at the slight alterations that had been made on the dress, she noticed that the final effect made it look even tighter, even if it felt comfortable and loose. She was showing way too much cleavage for her taste but there wasn't much she'd be able to do about it now. Another thing she could find fault with was the amount of skin on her shoulders showing, since the wrap wasn't designed to cover too much. She didn't mind wearing clothes similar to that back home but here it just seemed _wrong_.

Sam shook her head and replied, "You guys did a great job."

"If I may be so bold, my lady," began Kaeleck, ducking her head, "but what is troubling you?"

Sam realized that despite her compliment, her tone conveyed her apprehension about her plan. She certainly couldn't say the truth…at least, not the whole truth, so she said, "My people usually wait a long time to get married, joined, bonded, bound, or whatever people here call it, until they take some time to get to know each other. Then they get engaged, or betrothed. Then they finally marry. I guess this whole thing is against my values." It was partly true. She didn't know enough about Zeus to come up with anything very useful, really.

"That is what the dinner is for. My lady," Kaeleck added, ducking her head.

"I mean months, or even years if they choose," said Sam.

"Yes, goddess," Kaeleck replied.

"Please," Sam implored, "don't call me that."

"You are just not used to it, lady," Kaelyn assured. "You will become accustomed to it in time."

Sam's throat tightened. She didn't want to adjust to it. She didn't want to be here about to marry a Goa'uld. She wanted to be back at the SGC among friends. Her throat tightened further. Daniel was dead; she saw him shot and then all the blood…. Tears threatened to fall. She couldn't handle his death again. The experience with Nem had been tough enough, but this time, there was no falsified memory implanted in her mind about his being killed. The knowledge was in her mind and she knew it was real, just like she _knew_ Daniel wasn't dead before.

"Lady?" asked one of the twins.

Sam shook her head roughly. "It's nothing." She sighed. "Let's go."

They led her out of the room and took her to the dining hall. It was actually a real dining hall. Sam was surprised; this hadn't been in the layout she had observed of other ships. Zeus was already seated at one end in between two empty chairs at the far end. She noticed there were at least sixteen chairs on the sides and one at the opposite end of Zeus. Kaeleck took her to the chair directly on Zeus's right. Sam hesitantly sat down and Zeus's eyes flashed with an emotion Sam couldn't read.

"It is a pleasure that you are here to join me," he said coolly, though Sam could hear a thin layer of mockery beneath his words.

Sam nodded stiffly.

Zeus looked sharply over at a Jaffa that was near and he scurried off to do whatever Zeus had silently commanded. The same Jaffa returned minutes later with a large tray of food. Sam was relieved to say that she recognized enough of it from world's SG-1 had visited to know what was edible.

"I hope you find this humble meal pleasurable," Zeus said smoothly.

It was anything but humble. Moments later, more Jaffa came out carrying tons of food on golden trays. There was soon an even larger variety Sam recognized as rough versions of some Earth foods and things they had eaten on other planets.

They ate in silence for a few moments until Sam realized he was waiting for her to say something.

"What about my friends? How long was I in the sarcophagus?" she asked. As ashamed as she was to admit it, she was starved after having gone for who knows how long without eating.

Zeus set his fork down and studied her face. Finally, he answered, "Your..._friends_ never returned. I believe you were in the sarcophagus for a little less than one rotation of a little planet called Earth."

Sam tried not to choke. Did he know who she really was? If he did, he didn't let on. "My friends didn't leave me behind," she insisted fiercely.

His eyes shone with amusement. "We were on the planet for twelve hours and there was no sign of your friends coming back through the Chappa'ai."

"Then you're lying," said Sam.

Zeus's eyes glowed. "I am many things, but I not a liar. I deceive, perhaps, but never lie. I suggest you take note of that."

Sam turned back to her food and finished in a thick, tense silence that Zeus did not try to break. She took a sip of the wine and was surprised at how quickly it went to her head. She had a decent tolerance for alcohol and the light-headed fuzziness was unexpected.

The rest was finished in silence (_Big surprise,_ thought Sam) and Zeus signaled what was left of the food be taken away. He turned to Sam who met his eyes defiantly. "What is your decision? I understand this must have been difficult for you." he said, patronizingly.

Sam swallowed. "I am willingly going to be your queen."

Zeus smiled triumphantly. He leaned in to kiss Sam. He forced her mouth open and she reluctantly responded. It took a lot of self control for Sam not to gag. Finally, she ended it. The look in his eyes told her he enjoyed it way too much for her liking.

"I _will _see you later tonight," he whispered in her ear.

Sam forced her expression to remain neutral.

---------------

Sam had just gotten into her robes for that night and snuck away from her "personal servants." It didn't take long for her to find the engine room and get to work. Just as she found the correct panel, she heard a voice behind her.

"I would not recommend tampering with the vessel in any way."

She whirled around to see Zeus emerge from behind a corner. "How—" she whispered.

Zeus cut her off. "Samantha, Samantha, Samantha. Did you not realize I recognized you for who you were? Your uniform was a big give away. Besides, how could I fail to recognize one of the famed members of SG-1, and one, I might add, with the memories of the Tok'ra Jolinar?"

Sam thought back to when they had spoken earlier, when he made the reference to Earth. She realized that not many aliens would know how long it took Earth to rotate and her lack of reaction was suspicious. Unfortunately, her game was given up long before.

_Crap,_ thought Sam. This couldn't get much worse.


	3. Caught Red Handed

**Chapter 3**

Zeus sighed as if disappointed or resigned. "Samantha, I have told you no lies, nor have I done anything to harm you. Why do you repay me with deceit and an attempt to destroy my vessel?"

"You lied about my friends," Sam protested weakly. The fact that he "deceived" her and he really _did_ know who she was had made her very nervous.

He was giving her a disapproving look but the mocking amusement was clear in his eyes. "I did not," he replied as if speaking to a particularly dull child. "As I have told you, I am many things, but a liar is not one of them."

"We never leave a man behind," Sam argued.

Zeus gave a mirthless chuckle. "My Jaffa watched the Chappa'ai. No one came through. I believe I have already told you this?"

Sam recognized the question as rhetorical. He _had_ told her that, but she didn't believe him. What if he _was_ telling the truth? _No,_ she thought firmly, _They wouldn't leave me behind._ Then a thought chilled her and she visibly shuddered. She wouldn't have been in the sarcophagus for a day unless she had been fatally injured...or dead. And she knew that both Jack and Teal'c had to have seen her shot. What if they thought she was permanently dead—which she would have been without Zeus, she grudgingly admitted—with no hope of _ever_ coming back so they just left her body behind?

"I was dead," she whispered with certainty. No fatal injury would mean a day's worth of time "recuperating" in the sarcophagus. Anger began to form in the pit of her stomach at her teammates and the SG-1 for not caring enough about her—or what would have been her body—enough to come back and get it so they could at least have a proper burial for her. She could forgive Daniel considering he was too badly injured to have much say in the matter…and possibly dead, but the others could have had more decency at the very least!

Zeus smiled in mock sympathy. "You were. Otherwise I wouldn't have even bothered to use the sarcophagus. I'm surprised they didn't bother to mount a rescue. You are invaluable to the Goa'uld and Tau'ri and, what's more, you're their friend."

The full extent of the truth hit Sam in the chest and left her standing nearly breathless in anger. She had been left behind by three of the most important people in her life. But the small, defiant part of her had to say, "They had to've come back so that Jaffa who were shooting at us wouldn't take my...body back and put me in a sarcophagus. They probably assumed that you would torture me to death, bring me back, and keep doing it over and over until I was messed up enough to tell you everything."

"And yet I have done nothing of the sort," said Zeus softly. "But even so, they haven't returned."

He walked over and gently put his arms around her. She was numbed by her revelation but anger kept her grounded, and she was aware of what he was doing but not why. She stiffened.

He began rubbing her back soothingly but it had the opposite effect. Gentleness and compassion were the _last_ things she would expect a Goa'uld to show, genuinely felt or not (with the obvious exception of Hathor, who used such things to seduce men). She knew the Tok'ra were capable of feeling them—hell, she felt it—but she never knew a Goa'uld was able to as well.

It was creeping her out.

"What are you doing?" she asked flatly. Contrary to her tone, she felt herself relaxing, no matter how hard she fought.

"This is something the people of my host do to comfort each other if one was in pain," he replied.

Sam couldn't see his expression to gauge his sincerity without putting their faces in an uncomfortably close proximity, so she remained still and rigid.

"Since when do the Goa'uld care about others besides themselves?" she asked bitterly.

"You must have realized by now that I am different than the others of my kind?" This time, Sam could hear a trace of mockery in his voice.

Enough was enough; she broke out of his embrace. "But still a Goa'uld."

"I have observed my fellows and learned from their stupidity, their faults. It is true that I am Goa'uld, but that does not mean that I do not have any emotion like the others. How do you think the Tok'ra are able to feel _human_ emotions?" Sam was surprised to see that nothing about him was mocking any more. He was being genuinely serious, as if he was trying to prove something to her. "Do you despise me for what I am? For what you were?"

"What?" asked Sam sharply. "What I _was_?"

"You were Tok'ra, no matter how short a time that was, and the Tok'ra were once Goa'uld. That in itself proves my point. I have told you the truth so far and you have shown no inclination to believe me. Do you believe me now when I tell you that I am different?"

Sam swallowed. He did have a point. "Yes." she whispered.

"Then do you also believe me when I tell you I mean no harm?"

She replied quietly, "Yes."

But she didn't. Not really anyway.

With rapidly fading willpower, she steeled herself to go along with Zeus. Who knew? Maybe she'd run into another SG team and be able to go home and relay the information she had learned from him.

"Then will you be my queen and accept your new name?"

"New name?" she asked quizzically.

"Yes." Zeus's eyes narrowed. "We can't have the other System Lords thinking you're still on the side of the Tau'ri. They will see that you have willingly become my queen without the influence of a symbiote."

Sam gritted her teeth in annoyance but didn't let it show on her face. "Did you have a name in mind?"

He smiled. "A few, in fact. Though I believe you should be the one to select it."

"I'm not that familiar with Greek names," said Sam.

"Semele, Danae, Alcmene, Leda, Callisto, Io, Aegina, Europa, Maia, and Ganymede," he listed.

The whole thing seemed ridiculous to Sam but she decided to humor him anyway. From everything she'd heard Daniel say, she recognized most of the names Zeus mentioned were the mythological Zeus's lovers. Immediately, she dismissed Ganymede. According to Daniel, in mythology, Ganymede was a Trojan prince and Zeus made Ganymede his cupbearer. She just didn't like Danae, Alcmene, Leda, Io, Aegina, and Europa. That left Semele, Callisto, and Maia.

Sam smirked inwardly. It was time to see exactly how different Zeus was. "I can't decide between Semele, Callisto, and Maia. Maybe you can choose between those three," she flirted. It was poor and she knew it, but would Zeus go along with it?

Apparently. "I believe Maia was one of the lucky few that escaped punishment for her affair with your mythological Zeus. Perhaps we should see if it brings you any luck." Sam didn't have time to figure out what he meant before Zeus pulled her into a deep kiss. Her eyes widened in shock, but she had to go with it. Feeling sick, her allowed her lips to part and for Zeus to explore his new prize: herself.

Her new strategy was to go along with Zeus and then get away as soon as she could to report to the SGC or Tok'ra to tell them what she learned. Or maybe she wouldn't. It just depended on whether she decided to forgive them.

Zeus picked her up and carried her to his bed chamber.

---------------

Sam awoke the next morning and breathed a sigh of relief. Last night hadn't gone beyond touching and kissing. She thought that maybe he did it because he knew she was uncomfortable for obvious reasons. Or maybe he didn't. She didn't know. At the moment, between everything she thought she knew and all Zeus had told her, she had succeeded in becoming thoroughly confused.

Shaking her head, she sat up and reached for the robe that had appeared next to her side of the bed some time after she had fallen asleep.

It was time to find out what Zeus had in store for her.

------------------------------

**Six Months Later:**

Sam was standing next to Zeus up on the bridge. Now anyone from the SGC would not have recognized her. At least not by how she acted. Apparently, living with a Goa'uld would change a person, no matter how different from the others he was.

Presently, Zeus wore a plain, yet still impressive white tunic. He had a golden head band shaped in a miniature version of olive branches. Sam was wearing a long traditional Greek dress. It was a soft sky blue to complement her blue eyes. She, too, wore a head band that rested on fairly long hair, which was pulled back and plaited, but her band was plain gold, unshaped. Both of them wore hand devices.

They were awaiting the arrival of Osiris, who had wanted to meet them but was reluctant to explain why.

While they waited, Sam thought about how both she and her life had changed in the past six months. Her anger at the rest of the Tau'ri, which had started as a small simmer, had threatened to boil over the more she had time to think about it. It wasn't the sarcophagus that influenced her thinking; the only time she had had to use it was when Zeus first brought her aboard his vessel. Her killer's instinct had been honed into a Goa'uld's. For example, it didn't matter if a Jaffa deserved death for disobeying an order, she wouldn't hesitate to retire him permanently.

She wondered what the other Tau'ri would think if they _did _see her now. Or Tok'ra for that matter. She had yet to see or hear from one for over six months. But perhaps that wasn't surprising considering she made her allegiance to Zeus known.

Unfortunately, allegiance to Zeus had cost her respectability amongst the System Lords. They refused to acknowledge her as a queen to Zeus, but, rather, a misled concubine.

"My lord." The first prime interrupted Sam's wandering thoughts. "Osiris has arrived."

On cue, Osiris emerged. Sam recognized Daniel's old friend Sarah as the host. He smirked when he saw Sam. "I see you have your...queen here as well," he said in a tone akin to Zeus's when Sam was a newcomer.

Zeus's eyes flashed but he managed to keep his tone neutral with a hint of amusement. "You do not think Maia is a queen?"

"My lord," said Osiris, lowering his eyes in mock respect. "I intend no disrespect by any means. There have just been rumors among the other System Lords saying how you found yourself a lovely little concubine. One that betrayed her own people to rise in status."

"Oh, but surely the great and wise System Lords would not be so dense as to believe such things." Zeus carefully studied Osiris's face. Sam smirked inwardly.

Osiris smiled grimly, ignoring the insult. "Of course not. But now to the matter at hand: I have allied myself with a powerful new Goa'uld who wishes to join the System Lords. I—"

"You are here merely to beg support for this new Goa'uld. If he is so strong, why does he send a servant around to solicit support from others to aid his desire to ascend to the rank of System Lord?"Zeus asked unconcernedly.

"I do not ally myself with weak Goa'uld. Otherwise I would have sought allegiance with others," Osiris said, narrowing his eyes.

Zeus smiled. "So you consider every other System Lord below this...powerful new Goa'uld? They send you around to root out who is _worthy_ of supporting them?"

"Not worthy of support," Osiris replied. "Worthy of allegiance."

"Well, I feel honored to be considered one of the select few," said Zeus mockingly. He was being obtuse and he knew it.

Sam grinned at the barely concealed dumbfounded look on Osiris's face. No matter how, Zeus had defected an insult that Osiris meant as some sort of trap. For what, Sam had yet to figure out. That was one thing Zeus wanted her here for: to study Osiris and uncover hidden meanings within his conversation, while Zeus would try to goad Osiris into revealing as much information as possible. As Teal'c had once said, the Goa'ulds' arrogance was their greatest weakness. This was a strategy they often used. Sam didn't mind; she learned a lot more about the Goa'uld in six months than she had in four years.

"Very well," said Osiris, finally. "It appears that you will not support me or my ally." With a contemptuous glance at Sam, he added, "For this, you will be among the first of our victims."

"You seem confident of victory," noted Zeus calmly.

"I have no reason not to be," Osiris retorted. With that, he turned and stalked out of the room.

"Wonder what he means by that," muttered Sam.

"That is one thing I intend to find out," Zeus replied. "Osiris seems too confident for my liking. Others feel the same before they are destroyed but this appeared to be different, did it not? He was too secure in the thought of victory."

"Mm hmm. Do you have any idea what you're going to do?"

"Not at the moment," Zeus bitterly admitted. "What did you observe?"

"He's not lying. He's way too confident and he's one of the oldest Goa'uld. You don't live to be tens of thousands of years old through stupidity," replied Sam carefully. "I just wonder who his powerful new ally is. It would help us figure out how to deal with this."

"It would," Zeus agreed.

"I think we should to a little more investigating before we come to a conclusion." Zeus looked curiously at her. "That's what scientists on Earth do. Look how far they've come in just a few decades," Sam pointed out.

"Though they have yet to advance to the superiority of the Goa'uld," he said quietly.

"But how long did it take for the Goa'uld to advance to this level? Don't underestimate the Tau'ri," Sam warned. "They're probably stronger than both of us know."


	4. Reflection and Death

**Chapter 4**

Sam awoke a few hours before Zeus, which was unusual. He had a fairly accurate internal clock because of the symbiote. She glanced over at his still form. Loose shoulder-length hair created a soft brown curtain across his face. His expression was so peaceful and open that she ached to see him look at her in such a way. Even when they were alone, his face and eyes were guarded from her.

Rolling on her back, she took a moment—something she rarely had by herself anymore—to mull over the past six months and everything that had happened to her. Ever since she found out how much her "friends" had respected her memory by not even coming back for her body, the anger of hurt and betrayal had festered and grown slowly but steadily. At first, even she had been amazed at the intensity of her anger but now it was as familiar as the colonel and Daniel's bantering had once been.

_Daniel._

The one friend she couldn't be angry with. He hadn't meant to get shot, just like she hadn't meant to either. Unluckily for Zeus, anger toward him for causing Daniel's death had festered and grown, too. Luckily for him, though, Colonel O'Neill and Teal'c were the recipients of the brunt of her fury.

She blinked back tears yet unshed for her lost friend. Ever since she had been with Zeus, she had hardened emotionally. She now understood, in some ways, the reason for Teal'c's stoicism.

A flash of sudden anger made her forget about Daniel for a minute. She had, at the very least, expected Teal'c to have done something to get her back. He of all people knew what Zeus could have done once he had brought her back to life. Why, then, had he left her? It hurt more than anything.

Finally, the most anger was reserved for the colonel. What happened to his "never leave a man behind" motto? If he truly believed it, then why did he leave her behind? _The hypocrite._

She thought back to their first time they had met. He had said he had a problem with scientists. Taking a second to think about the notion, she immediately dismissed the very idea. He was fine with Daniel. But what about her? Was it because she had been The Girl? Did he think she was weak? If he did, he'd find it quite to the contrary when their paths crossed again. She couldn't help that she was The Girl, and Colonel O'Neill _would_ see the error of his ways.

As a distraction, she thought of Zeus. He was very different from any other Goa'uld she'd heard about. Even though the Goa'uld were supposed to be evil and harsh, he was a much gentler lover than Jonas Hanson had ever been. If she'd laid eyes on him before joining the program, she wouldn't have hesitated to label Zeus as cute.

There was something else hovering in a secluded corner in her mind that she constantly failed to grasp. Though she couldn't place him, there was something distractingly familiar about him. It definitely wasn't from any of her memories, more like one of Jolinar's. If there was one thing she had learned in the past four years, it was to trust Jolinar's instincts and memories.

Zeus stirred next to her. She brushed his hair away from his face.

He grabbed her hand and began to trail soft kisses up her arm that never failed to make her shiver with desire.

Zeus's company was so much more pleasurable than Jonas's had ever been, decided Sam and not for the first time.

---------------

It was several hours later when Zeus and "Maia" were standing in the bridge, watching Zeus's planet, Thebes, grow nearer and nearer on the screen.

Sam was nervous. This would be her first visit to Thebes. It wasn't anything unusual, just the same butterflies she always had in her stomach whenever she was "presented" at a different planet and didn't want to screw things up for Zeus. She swallowed around her heart, which seemed to have lodged itself in her throat, and tried to concentrate on other obscure things.

Today, she was wearing a long, rich, purple Grecian dress. Its straps were fastened each with a gold disk and a bolt of lightning engraved into them.

Zeus was wearing his usual; a toga, except this one was similar in color to Sam's instead of white.

That was another thing Sam found odd but never gave much thought to; the fact that he didn't care about wearing gold. He preferred more common colors. Every other Goa'uld Sam encountered loved to show off just how powerful they were through flashy clothes. Not Zeus.

They left the bridge and walked slowly to the ring platform, escorted by Kaelyn and Kaeleck; Acamas, Zeus's first prime; and a few other Jaffa guards. Naturally, they had their staff weapons and zats, while Sam and Zeus had hand devices. Sam also had a knife strapped to her leg, which Zeus didn't know about. What he didn't know wouldn't hurt him.

The rings activated and Sam found herself on a gorgeous planet. It was as if Ancient Greece had been restored perfectly. There was a white marble path leading to a large building that resembled what once could have been the Parthenon. Marble statues were erected—Zeus of course—and dozens of different kinds of trees, shrubs, and flowers were planted. There were also some people standing by, wearing typical Ancient Grecian clothing.

Sam didn't sense any symbiotes other than Zeus's and the Jaffas'.

One detail that failed to escape her was the look on the locals' faces. They held none of the hunted and frightened looks that people on other Goa'uld-ruled planets had. Instead, their faces held awe, reverence, and _happiness._ Just like the other locals on Zeus's other planets.

She shook her head slightly. That was another thing about Zeus. His people _wanted_ to see him. They gave every sign that they willingly worshipped Zeus, not fear that they would die if they didn't.

They beheld Sam in similar reverence. At first—back on her first time seeing Zeus's people—their respect and open admiration of her unnerved her but she was used to it by now. It didn't mean that she had to like it. She still had the same negative feelings of being worshipped as a false deity.

As they walked by, the people kneeled. Another interesting thing. Once again, nothing appeared forced like with the other Goa'ulds. The growing crowd was doing it on their own free will. At least, that's what it appeared to be. Still, Sam couldn't but help remember how Kasuf was so cowed around Apophis, and he was the leader of the Abydonians for cryin' out loud! Her heart ached thinking about Abydos. It reminded her too much of Daniel and her "friends."

They stepped toward the Parthenon-like building. Sam almost smiled when she thought of how much Daniel would love to come to this planet and how ticked the colonel would be when Daniel would undoubtedly argue about spending a lot of time studying the land and buildings.

Sam scolded herself. She shouldn't be thinking about the Tau'ri. She had another life here. One she wasn't willing to leave very quickly.

A bead of sweat trickled down the side of her face. Why had Zeus needed to pick a planet in a binary system? Especially considering this planet was close enough to become hot in the summers and far enough away to become cold in the winters. She was quite pleased that she still bothered to keep up with her old job, not that it was hard. After all, she _was_ a scientist first. Her location and status didn't change that.

Their slow, simple trek to the building became a torturous and excruciatingly hot journey. Sam berated herself for not realizing that the weather would be this hot. Even her light and airy dress felt like a ten pound comforter. The trees that began growing midway along the path seemed like a thousand light-years away. Even though they were probably about twenty yards away in actuality, they never appeared to be getting closer. It took major self control not to show her excruciating discomfort.

Finally, the sweet salvation of shade came. Sam breathed a silent sigh of relief. The slow walk thing seemed completely pointless to her but it was something Zeus insisted on, so she didn't have much of a say in the matter. _Still,_ she thought wistfully,_ it would be a lot less excruciating if we just walked in at a normal pace._ It was one of those times she envied Zeus having a symbiote; he didn't have to worry about temperature as much as Sam did. The back of her neck twinged.

Suddenly, the sound of a staff blast rang out. A second followed in rapid succession. One hit Zeus in the head and neck while the other struck his back. Out of instinct, Sam hurtled to the ground just as a third blast whizzed over her head had been seconds later. People had begun to cry in terror and flee. A few people stayed to try and protect Sam and Zeus.

She controlled her gag reflex at seeing Zeus's burnt, twisted, and bloody body crumpled next to her. It was obvious that both host and symbiote had died instantly. She quickly jumped up.

"Get down!" she shouted. She had just been barely able to detect a new symbiote before the tingly feeling vanished. So the strange feeling before _wasn't_ from the heat. Her face burned with anger and shame.

The crowd that had remained immediately ducked to the ground. Using her hand device, Sam released a burst of energy in the direction she sensed the presence of a symbiote. The blast caught a person rushing away and sent him sprawling. Sam pelted toward him as he got up and continued his mad dash.

Luckily, she wasn't wearing prissy little high heels. Like the other Grecian people here (and Zeus) she was wearing sandals. The only disadvantage was the fact she ankles kept wanting to twist on the uneven ground. Sam and the other person continued running and jumping over decorative shrubs that happened to be in their way.

Finally, five months of very little physical workouts combined with tortuous heat caught up to her. Wheezing and puffing, she slowed to a stop. The other continued on without slowing down, further proof that it had a symbiote. Trembling from exhaustion was replaced by shakes of anger. Zeus was dead because of this person. Whoever he was, he would pay.

She began walking back. It was then that she realized Zeus had a sarcophagus on board his ship. A plan began to form in her mind. This would be seen as a sign of weakness by his people. If she got Zeus back to his ship, she could show the people that he had the power to conquer death.

With renewed vigor, she slowly jogged back to the Parthenon building, ignoring the streams of sweat that coated her body.

When she got back, she noted she had run almost two miles at a flat out run. It wasn't bad but it didn't beat her old records either.

"Get him back to the ship," she ordered Acamas. He was standing over Zeus's fallen body, looking as lost as a seasoned Jaffa was capable of.

"With respect, but to what end, my queen?" he asked.

Using her plan, and relying on the fact that Acamas didn't seem to know about a sarcophagus's healing qualities, she responded, "He had the power to bring me back to life. I know for a fact that he can come back. But he can't do it unless we get him back to the ship."

Zeus's body was already in Acamas's arms as soon as Sam said that she knew he could come back. Wordlessly, she led the way back to the ship at a brisk pace.

At the spot the rings would appear, she paused. "Do you know where the sarcophagus is?" she asked.

Acamas looked troubled. "I am afraid I do not know what you are speaking of," he said, desperation lacing his voice.

"Zeus never told you about the sarcophagus," said Sam in disbelief. Acamas nodded in agreement with her assessment. "Do you know the room Zeus took me to when I was...dead?"

Acamas nodded slowly. "I believe so."

"There's a sarcophagus in that room. Put Zeus in it. He'll be fine then. When you do that, leave and Zeus will come back out when he's ready," said Sam. She would have gone with Zeus but these people needed to be reassured their leader would come back as strong as before.

When Acamas and Zeus were ringed up, Sam turned and hurried away, ignoring how hot the sun was on her sweaty face, back, and arms. Her hair was plastered to her face. She wiped the sweat off of her face and brushed her hair back. She knew she looked "unbecoming" but this was more important than appearances.

Upon entering, Sam noted that a decently large group of people had returned.

At the far end of the building was a platform. Her stomach knotted as people moved out of her way, making the platform seem even closer. She wasn't looking forward to talking by herself. Naturally, she had given mini speeches on the other planets but those had been prewritten and she hadn't been alone.

She climbed the stairs and stepped onto the platform. Every head turned toward her, waiting expectantly.

Unsure of what to say, she shakily began, "Due to some...unwelcome company by his enemies, my Lord Zeus is injured. Through his power, he planned a way to defeat death when he anticipated an attack." Her voice strengthened. "At this very moment, Zeus is recuperating and may appear tonight. Tomorrow midday at the latest, if he so chooses."

She hurried—inconspicuously, of course—off the stage. As she headed back to the ship, she saw grateful and hopeful looks mingling throughout the crowd.

Followed by Kaelyn, Kaeleck, and the remaining Jaffa warriors, she went back to the ship and stood under the ring platform.

The rings came down and they were transported up. Sam went to the room with the sarcophagus and was relieved to see it activated. She sat down and waited for Zeus to emerge alive and well.

Sam leaned against the sarcophagus and breathed a sigh of relief. She knew she and Zeus had just jumped a tough hurdle and succeeded.

* * *

_Okay, y'all seem like a bunch of smart cookies, but I'll say this anyway:_

-oOoOoOo-

_symbolizes a change in setting _and_ point of view._

---------------

_symbolizes that in other words, a scene and certain amount of time has changed but maintains a single point of view._


	5. Planning for a Summit

**Chapter 5**

Zeus emerged from the sarcophagus several hours later.

Sam had begun dozing when the sound of the sarcophagus opening startled her to wakefulness. She quickly stood up, anxious to see if Zeus was alright.

He staggered when he finally managed to stand. Sam rushed to his side to stabilize him. Other than being pale in the milky white glow of the sarcophagus, he looked unharmed.

"Maia," he said weakly, "why was I in the sarcophagus? What…happened to me?"

"Y-you were killed," Sam responded hesitantly. "The one responsible had a symbiote, so I'd guess it was one of the Tok'ra." She noticed a dark and strange emotion flicker through Zeus's eyes before they returned to their usual mocking mask.

"Tok'ra scum," he hissed under his breath. The part of Jolinar in the back of Sam's brain winced. Brief anger flared in the pit of her stomach, but she quickly quelled the feeling.

"They have reason to want all Goa'uld dead," she murmured, brushing a strand of soft brown hair out of his face.

His emerald eyes flashed gold as he ruthlessly grabbed her wrist. Sam's expression hardened to match his suddenly furious mood. "The Tok'ra have succeeded in killing me. Nothing will stop me from taking revenge." His grip loosened slightly. "I can understand why you would find sympathy with them. Your only real view on our war was through the eyes of one of their own. Unlike others, I can understand how you may be conflicted. I ask you, though, to _never_ show any empathy to a Tok'ra in my presence. Next time, I will not be so understanding."

"Yes, my lord," said Sam, giving him a look of venom. He roughly released her hand and walked out of the room.

"What do the people of Thebes think? They do not doubt me as their god?" called Zeus over his shoulder.

Still seething, Sam replied, "I spoke with them and told them that you had, in fact, died." Zeus turned sharply, almost losing his balance, his expression one of vengeful anger. "I also told them that like any powerful god, you possessed enough power to rise from the dead."

His expression changed to thoughtfulness. He seemed to struggle for words before simply saying, "Thank you. Your choice was wise. I am sorry for my brief moment of doubt."

Sam's eyes grew wide with shock as he turned and left the room. A Goa'uld had actually admitted he was wrong and apologized. Wasn't there a major universal rule that stated all Goa'uld were not supposed to do that? _Then again..._. and definitely not for the first time, Sam wondered at the...almost human…actions of Zeus.

One, he let her live and go unpunished after she tried to destroy his ship. That in itself was a shock. Two, he actually seemed to _care_ for her, unlike what another Goa'uld would probably have felt. If anything, she was surprised lust hadn't driven him to rape. Not that she was complaining. Three, he tried to understand people. That, if anything, was exactly _why_ she'd gotten away with almost blowing up his ship. Four, he had never used a sarcophagus before this. The fact that Acamas, the first prime, had no clue what a sarcophagus was, was a pretty good indicator of the sarcophagus receiving little use. Zeus's bewilderment upon waking was also cause for suspicion.

She stopped listing details before she could get too carried away. She was sure that she could think of dozens of ways he was so unlike the Goa'uld. _Yet,_ she thought, _he is enough like them that no one can get suspicious unless you live with him for awhile._

Shaking her head, she left the room and went the direction she guessed Zeus would have gone.

She paused outside of their room before hesitantly entering. Her guess was right.

He was sitting on the bed, the top of his toga off. A different one was lying next to him, as if he had just flung it there and sat down, which he probably had.

She went over and sat one his other side, running her hand soothingly along his back. He flinched away from her touch.

"What?" she asked softly, withdrawing her hand, more out of surprise than anything.

"Leave," he said, his voice harsh. What the hell? Sam was torn between hurt and anger. What had she done wrong? Why was he pushing her away?

"What?" she repeated stiffly. She laced her fingers together and rested her hands on her lap.

"You should leave Thebes and return to your Tau'ri people."

"Why?" Sam demanded.

"It is too dangerous for you to remain. I fear that if you do, a Tok'ra spy shall attempt to kill you as well." He pinched the bridge of his nose, reminding Sam painfully of Daniel. "It does not matter if you leave. My demise will be met as a result of weakness."

She shook her head. "No. If I do die, then you can use the sarcophagus like you did today."

"We both know what it has done to the others. Corrupted them and made them deranged. Soulless vessels that wander the galaxy with nothing but death and destruction to think about. I do not want that. I do not want to become the monsters that they are. I don't want you to meet that fate either."

Sam peered closely at him. Even if she bothered to see if there was any emotion in his eyes, she knew it would be pointless. His eyes never showed emotion. Yet, being with him long enough, she could pick up on the feelings he never could show. "There's something else. What is it?"

"I will not say. Maia, you should go back to your people."

_Well at least he doesn't dance around with the cannots versus the will nots,_ thought Sam sardonically. _Unfortunately, he's good at changing the subject, too._

"I don't want to," she retorted, humoring him. "They left me behind. The only one I can forgive is the one that died."

Zeus's lips twitched into a slightly mocking smirk. "Doctor Jackson." It was a statement.

She nodded. "It's not that I envy him, but…I guess what I don't understand is why they left me but not him. The firefight couldn't have been so bad that they'd just get up and leave. They've been through worse for far less a reason to stay behind."

"You cannot always see why people do the things they do in the heat of the moment."

"That's not an excuse," snarled Sam. "I thought I had proved myself to them repeatedly. Was I really such a hindrance to them that they would do that? Was it because I was The Girl?"

Zeus looked away, his expression unreadable. "Perhaps, we had best get back to the planet's surface."

"What?" asked Sam at the abrupt change in subject.

Zeus raised his eyebrows at her. Sighing, Sam went to find her own change of clothes. There was probably going to be a celebratory feast at Zeus's rebirth and she was hungry. She smirked; Zeus wasn't off the hook quite yet. There was definitely more that she wanted to say to him. He'd raised too many questions.

---------------

Zeus watched Maia. She had as good as sworn her loyalty to him, willingly. The incident on Thebes showed him that attending the upcoming summit probably wasn't a good idea for him. He would be shamed in front of the others; something he would not stand for.

On the spur of the moment, for some reason he could not fathom, even later, he asked, "Maia, I wish you to attend the summit in my place."

She spun around. "Attend the summit? Why?" The astonishment on her face was comical. He didn't laugh.

"Yes. As to why, it would be experience, since you are my queen," Zeus replied calmly.

The expression on her face was unreadable as she turned back around, seeming to accept his order and explanation.

Zeus and Maia went back to their mutual silence and he continued watching her change.

- oOoOoOo -

Though he didn't know why, Daniel's mind went back to the firefight that had killed Sam and nearly killed him.

He had woken up, knowing that he had nearly died. Again. The stitches in his abdomen only proved it. Then Jack came in looking worse than Daniel had seen him in years. Not since they had first met. Then Jack told him about the failed mission.

He felt like he had almost died once more when the news of Sam's death came to him. After he had been released from the infirmary, something inside him still refused to let her go. At times, soon after, it felt like she could have been right behind him, but when he'd turn, no one was there. Finally, he had to admit to himself that she really was dead. His gut argued, but the truth was right in front of his face.

"Doctor Jackson?" General Hammond's voice shook Daniel out of his memories. Daniel blinked in confusion until he remembered that he was in the middle on a briefing.

"Wha-Oh, sorry, sir. I didn't get much sleep last night," he said sheepishly.

"Do you ever?" Jack retorted.

"Yeah, but last night I actually tried to sleep," Daniel shot back with a glare.

"I guess your body's just not used to getting sleep in a bed, then," Jack muttered under Hammond's stern scrutiny.

_Funny, Jack. Real funny,_ Daniel thought bitterly. He hated how Jack and Teal'c had been so impassive about Sam. Was he the only one that ever thought about her now? He knew that Teal'c wasn't likely to show emotion but Jack seemed to recover after Daniel got released from the infirmary. He wondered if they'd been so stoic after Nem or that time two years ago on Apophis's ship.

"I just received news from the Tok'ra," Hammond announced, pulling Daniel out of his reverie.

Daniel perked up at that. Not by much, but it would hold his attention long enough to stop him from concentrating on Sam.

"In five months from now, the system lords will be holding a summit. The council believes now would be an excellent opportunity for us and them to gain important access to the Goa'uld."

"I take we need to do their dirty work again?" Jack grumbled.

"Think about it, Jack," Daniel put in. "The Goa'uld would sense if any Tok'ra were there."

"So what? They have Jaffa. Won't their symbiote sensing ability be messed up?"

"When the Goa'uld go to a summit, Colonel O'Neill," Teal'c explained, "it is on neutral ground. The Goa'uld have only their most trusted human go into the meeting room with them."

"So…human? Not anyone with a symbiote?" Jack clarified, almost sounding disappointed. General Hammond frowned at him.

"Yes, Jack. That's what Teal'c was trying to say," Daniel smirked. "And I'm supposed to be the one who can't think." Jack scowled across the table at him.

"Jacob didn't clarify what the council wanted us to do," Hammond said before Jack could retort. "Until then, we'll just have to wait."

"That's it then?" Jack asked.

"Yes, Colonel. You're free to have the rest of the day off. That _means,_ Doctor Jackson, that none of you are to be on this base or take any work home with you."

"Yes, sir," Daniel mumbled unhappily. There went the two things that could distract him from his depression.

"C'mon, Daniel. T, what do you say about a team night?" Jack asked eagerly. They all stood up and prepared to leave.

His thoughts drifting to Sam again, Daniel replied, "I don't really feel like it tonight."

"Anything to do with your lack of sleep?" Daniel saw sympathy and understanding in the older man's gaze.

"Kind of." The three members of SG-1 walked down the halls in companionable silence.

Ten minutes later, Daniel picked up some stuff from his lab and headed home, still half expecting Sam to stop him so they could work onsome longovernight project.


	6. Oh What a Tangled Web We Weave

Five months later, and Daniel was aboard a Goa'uld mothership, disguised as Yu's lok'taur(?). Both Jacob and Selmak had done much to allay his misgivings, but he still couldn't shake the feeling that something would go wrong. This was usually the gut feeling he subconsiously got whenever he was about to touch something that would try to blow him to kingdom come, or something very, very bad.

He was presently waiting in the meeting room with Yu and several other System Lords. He knew they were all impatiently waiting for the final System Lord to arrive, and he, too, wished they would get there soon.

Suddenly, a slave walked in. He was greeted with silence. "My Lords," he announced, "the final guest has arrived."

Daniel got his "ring" out just as Osiris strode in. Surprised, Daniel moved to get out of Osiris's line of vision.

"Welcome, Osiris," Ba'al said. He showed no emotion over the other Goa'uld's entrance.

"I thank you for honoring my request," replied Osiris.

One of the System Lords--Olokun, Daniel remembered--opened his mouth to speak. Before any sound came out, someone disturbingly familiar spoke, "What? No welcoming party for me? Zeus won't be pleased about that when I report it to him."

Osiris moved and Daniel was able to confirm, without a doubt, who the speaker was:

Sam.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sam was leaning casually against the opening to the summit chamber, attired in a teal tunic and earth-brown breeches. She barely concealed a gasp of amazement when she saw Daniel standing behind Yu. To prevent herself from making any slips that might reveal her friend--she still considered Daniel her friend, as he was not a part of her being left behind; and she figured that Daniel's situation wasn't like hers, where he was really serving a System Lord--Sam forced her gaze to evenly sweep over the surprised System Lords.

"This summit is for System Lords only," Osiris snarled.

"Am I not considered one?" Sam gasped in mock surprise. "I'm here to represent Zeus. Last I looked, a System Lord was allowed to send his second-in-command."

"Only the Goa'uld are allowed to participate in a summit," Ba'al argued.

Sam allowed her eyes to flicker to Daniel for a moment. His face was a still mask but she saw a myriad of emotions warring in his eyes.

"And technically I can be here since I am the second of Zeus's command," Sam replied calmly.

"Jarren?" she head Yu mutter, holding out his hand for a drink. Obediently, Daniel gave it to him, his face hidden.

"Second-in-command or leader of the harem?" Osiris asked. "Last _I_ looked, concubines weren't allowed to be here. Lok'taur or other."

"I am _not_ a slutty concubine," hissed Sam, her eyes narrowing.

"Both of you, silence," Ba'al growled. "We will accept both of you as System Lords, for this summit only."

Ignoring Sam, Osiris turned to Ba'al. "I think you'll find _I_ have much to offer. Shall we proceed?"

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

When the summit broke for a short break, Daniel rushed to his part of Yu's quarters. Jacob had to know Sam was here and aparently serving a System Lord. Rumaging, he found the communication device and said, "Jacob?"

"Daniel, what's the delay?" Jacob asked. "Everyone should be there by now."

"Yeah, we got a full house. There's just a couple of problems." Daniel debated whether he should tell Jacob about Sam or Sarah first. Not wanting to stay silent for too long, Daniel blurted, "Sarah's here." Instantly, he wanted to smack himself. Jacob needed to hear about his daughter right away. At least, according to the others, Sam wasn't really a Goa'uld so the poison shouldn't affect her. He still found it disturbing if not impossible that Sam would willingly serve the Goa'uld. Either that, or she was undercover.

"Sarah? You mean Osiris? Did she recognize you? What's the other problem?"

"I don't know if she recognised me," Daniel answered. "Look, the--" The door to his quarters opened. Hiding the device, Daniel turned to see Osiris.

"Daniel Jackson. You're a rather long way from home aren't you?" Osiris smiled. The door closed.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sam was trying to get to Yu's servants' quarters. Instinct--and common sense--told her that's where Daniel would be. Stopping outside the door, she heared voices from within. Her heart skipped a beat and a dark pit formed in the bottom of her stomach when Osiris's voice wafted through the hard metal.

She opened the door and saw the snake-head advancing on Daniel, something glinting in his hand. Sam bluffed, "Ya know, Osiris, there aren't supposed to be any weapons here." Osiris whirled around and Daniel's eyes widened in shock. "I'm not well versed in the Egyptian god imposter's politics, but I believe no weapons are allowed in any kind of _peace_ talks."

The Goa'uld's eyes glowed briefly. "Well then, if you want to make peace with servants, be my guest."

"Get out before I report you to the others," Sam growled.

Osiris left with a mockingly knowing smile. Sam watched him leave. Her gaze going back to Daniel, she saw his eyes narrowed in suspicion.

"Look, I'm not going to betray you," Sam said. "I don't stab my friends in the back."

"Should I take that as a compliment?" Daniel hissed.

Sam winced. "If you want to. Can a take a guess at what you're doing here?" At his dubious expression, Sam said, "Considering I'm low on the food chain in there, I had plenty of time to think."

"Fine," Daniel shrugged.

"If it makes you feel any better, I won't even tell Zeus about you infiltrating the summit. Very clever, by the way. I'll give the Tok'ra points for that." Sam motioned to a chair. "Mind if I sit?" He shrugged and she sat down, while he remained standing. "I've been sitting down the whole time; you haven't. It's your place here, so you're welcome to sit." He didn't move. "Okay then. The Tok'ra wanted someone to act as lok'taur to Yu so they sent you. I have no clue what they want you here for, but I'll guess that it's some form of sabotage.

"In being here, you also need some way to communicate with a nearby Tok'ra ship. You have a communication device here somewhere." Sam studied his face to see if she was close. His thoughts and emotions were well guarded. "Go ahead, talk with my dad or whoever's on the ship. I won't stop you. In fact, I may even help you report. I hate all of them as much as I ever did, but because of Jolinar, I can't hate the Tok'ra. Therefore, I'm more willing to side with them in a n arguement. I only ask in return that they leave Zeus alone. We were _not_ amused by the Tok'ra's assassination attempt."

"What?" Daniel asked. "No one tried to kill you, did they?"

"No," Sam admitted. "They were after Zeus." She stood up, unable to remain sitting. Biting her lip, she met Daniel's eyes. "I missed you," she murmured.

Daniel blinked, aparently taken aback. "We-we all missed you too."

"I'm sure," Sam shrugged. "Then that explains why I was left behind."

"What?" Daniel asked again.

"Back on the planet, I saw you get shot and I thought you were dead. It distracted me long enough for me to get killed by a staff blast. I was left behind. It was _Zeus_ that came for me. Colonel O'Neill and Teal'c never even made an attempt to go back and get me." The familiar rage at her friends' desertion welled up. Sam forced it back down. It wasn't Daniel's fault; she had no reason to take her fight out on him.

"Daniel?" a hesitant voice whispered from behind Daniel's back.

Reluctantly, Daniel brought a small communication device into sight. "I'm here," he sighed.

"What was the other problem with the summit?" her father asked. Sam guessed this conversation had been interrupted by Osiris.

She motioned Daniel give the device to her. Despite obvious misgivings, he did so.

"I'm probably the other problem," she said into it.

The other end was silent. Then, "Who is this?"

"Doctor Jackson obviously forgot to mention Zeus's second-in-command, Maia, was attending," she responded, somewhat annoyed her own father didn't even recognize her voice.

"Daniel, what is a queen doing talking to a Tok'ra?" Jacob demanded to know. "No one was supposed to know about this."

"She guessed it," Daniel answered. "That and...despite what my instinct should be, it's telling me we can trust her."

"Oh? Dare I asked why?" Jacob snarled.

"Because, _Dad_," Sam said, "it's me." She knew it was too late, thanks to her seeing Daniel, to stay hidden, so she figured it was alright for at least her father to know she was okay.

"Sammy?" Jacob whispered. "_You're_ Maia? Zeus's new queen? How? Why haven't you done more to destroy the Tok'ra if you're sided with the Goa'uld now?"

"Because, as I have told Daniel, thanks to Jolinar, if any conflict should arise, I would be more willing to help the Tok'ra than with the Goa'uld," Sam replied quietly.

"And yet Malek tells me you tried to kill him," Selmak said matter-of-factly.

"He succeeded in killing Zeus. At least, temporarily," Sam answered venomously. "You know what? Daniel"--she tossed Daniel his little device--"You finish your report. I have nothing I want to say."

Sam left the servants' quarters and went back to her own quarters to prepare for the second half of the summit.

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**I know that it probably wasn't the harrowing reunion some were hoping for, but Sam has more issues for conflict. I'm presently working with getting them down. With any luck, I can be done with this by the end of this month. End of March at the absolute latest.**


	7. Summit's Conclusion

Sam shook was barely supressed anger. She, of course, knew about Anubis from Zeus and scant memories Jolinar left; but she was in no way happy about the possibility he might return to the rank of System Lord. She even more upset that it was Osiris vouching for him.

"Who among us," asked Ba'al, "accepts the return of Anubis to the System Lords?" He himself clasped his hands together and nodded.

Sam clenched her fists and gritted her teeth. She knew it was highly likely the others would support his rise through the ranks. Her heart sank as she saw all of the others nod their heads. When their attention reluctantly came to her, she shook her head. She was slightly pleased to see Yu shake his head as well. Slightly. They were out-voted.

"The vote need not be unanimous," Ba'al said. "By count of six to two, Anubis is awarded the status of System Lord and welcomed back among those that lead the Goa'uld. Osiris will be allowed to vote on his behalf."

_Naturally,_ thought Sam angrily. _They'll let another Goa'uld in without a question. It's just when _I'm_ supposed to come in and represent a System Lord that they complain._

"You shall not regret this," Osiris smirked.

"May we rule forever," Ba'al concured.

One of the others--Olokun, if Sam remembered correctly--said, "We have much to discuss in that regard."

"But first..." said Bastet.

"Lor lor harek. Sha mel," Ba'al finished.

In response, the lights dimmed and a vat of--to Sam's disgust--symbiotes was ringed in. Everone with the exception of Sam and the Lok'taurs got up. They approached the vat and took a symbiote out. Sam looked away as the System Lords began eating the symbiotes. The squealing and shrieking noises were enough to make her stomach churn. She figured she would never eat a snake if she could help it. This was one of those times she could and she took advantage.

Finally, the squealing stopped and the vat was ringed back up. Sam saw Osiris smirking at her. Daniel, carrying Yu's water jug, left.

The System Lords began discussing their losses in recent battles with each other. Bastet was interrogating Osiris on a recent battle where she lost two motherships. Daniel walked back in, carefully carrying the jug. Sam figured it had either been empty or Yu found some reason to get Daniel out of the room.

"Your strategy was weak," Osiris scoffed.

"Your master has extracted tolls from each of us," Yu added.

Osiris bristled a bit but kept his temper under control. "Yet you all voted to welcome him back into the fold," he retorted.

_Not all of us,_ Sam replied silently. _Some of us know better than to welcome a traitor back._ She dared not say it aloud or Zeus would probably be Anubis's next target.

"The power he has regained so quickly is worthy of respect," Ba'al grudgingly admitted.

Olokun asked, "What does he offer now to repay the damage he has done in gathering his forces?"

Osiris sneered, "Anubis owes the System Lords nothing. He joins you for the greater good of all Goa'uld."

Sam snorted. _Greater good my ass._ The others turned to her. She held her composure.

"I'm sorry," she said, adopting a mocking tone. "I just find it hard to believe that a Goa'uld is acting in the interest of his fellows." Her thoughts turned to Zeus. He never acted in the interest of the others, but he was by far one of the most selfless Goa'uld she'd seen. By selfless, she meant slightly less selfish on the behalf of his followers.

"You could not understand," Osiris said in mock sympathy. "In order to understand our motives, you must be one of us."

"The same should go for humans, but for someone with a host from Earth, you certainly don't understand Tau'ri motives very well," Sam said mildly.

"As a traitor, you are one to speak," he retorted.

"Compared to you, I'm as innocent as Sarah," Sam replied cooly. Osiris's eyes glowed.

"It was her own fault. I believe you have a saying: 'Curiousity killed the cat'?"

Sam smirked. "What does curiousity have to do with me not understanding Goa'uld motivation?"

"Anubis may have grown strong," Ba'al interrupted, flashing Sam and Osiris a very unhappy glare; "but he does not outweigh the collective power of the System Lords. What deed does Anubis offer as evidence of the dedication you claim on his behalf?"

"Speak now or leave us," Yu snarled.

Osiris ignored him. "As I have said before, Anubis believes that the greatest threat to the Goa'uld is within."

"Why does he care?" put in Sam. "With the rest of you weak from this enemy within, he could just snatch your power away from you without a fight."

"On the contrary," Osiris said. "As we meet here, that threat is being weakened. Over the years we have all lost a great deal to the infiltrations, subversions, and rebellious acts of the Tok'ra." Sam's stomach clenched. "Today will be henceforth known as the day that the blood of the Tok'ra ran free and their rebellion ended for good." He gazed pointedly at Sam, who kept her expression neutral.

_At least Daniel will be able to warn them,_ Sam thought with some relief.

The official summit ended soon after. Most of it was verbal attacks on Osiris as to why Anubis deserved to ascend to their ranks. The various System Lords dispersed. Sam led her lok'taur back to her quarters. Zeus would be really pissed when he heard about Anubis.

She was a little nervous that she would have to endure the anger he would surely take out on an innocent Jaffa before her. The sight of the colorful ways of torture Zeus could concoct made her stomach churn nearly as badly as hearing the symbiotes devoured.

After learning about Daniel posing at Yu's lok'tuar, she hadn't been too happy to learn that it was Yu's quarters--and as a result, his cargo ship--she had to pass by whenever she wanted to go straight from the summit to her quarters. Naturally, there were other ways but this route was shortest.

They gathered their things and headed to the cargo bay. They passed Yu's and she could hear muffled yelling. She would have ignored it except she recoginized Daniel and Osiris's voices. Hastily, she dropped what she had been carrying and pounded on the door.

Rationality kicked in and Sam punched in a code on the small control pad. The doors opened and she saw Yu and Daniel trying to fight off Osiris. By the look of the situation, Yu had been stabbed and was trying to keep Osiris from killing Daniel. Daniel was trying to get free from Osiris. It appeared that Osiris was winning. Without thinking, Sam threw herself into the din.

She grabbed Osiris's hair and pulled his head back. When he saw Sam, his eyes glowed. He grabbed Sam's other arm, being unable to grab the hand that had his hair. Using a different tactic, she wriggled herself between Osiris and Daniel--she was too hyped up to know exactly how she accomplished that--and pushed. As a result, Osiris was forced to let go of Daniel, who went sprawling, with Sam following. She landed on his arm.

"Are you--?" she gasped.

"Fine," Daniel finished, panting. "I'm fine."

"Go," growled Sam. She checked on Osiris. He was distracted enough by Yu.

"Come with me," Daniel begged. They stood slowly up.

Sam shook her head violently. "There's no time to argue. I'm not going. If you stay, we might be able to subdue Osiris, but I don't know. You're the one he's after, so he might stop fighting once you leave."

"That's a pretty big 'might'," Daniel pointed out.

"I'm also someone who has a sarcophagus at hand," said Sam. "I couldn't guarantee your safety should Zeus bring you back to life if Osiris managed to kill you." She pointed her hand device at him as a last resort. "Don't make me use this," she pleaded.

"You wouldn't," Daniel said, though he looked wary.

The stone on the palm of the device glowed. "If that's what it takes to make you leave," she replied firmly.

Hesitantly, Daniel nodded and hurriedly punched buttons to the escape pods.

"No!" shrieked Osiris. He knocked Yu out and shoved Sam out of the way. She collided with the wall, winded. Luckily, Daniel was already in the pod and floating out of the shield.

Recognizing her compromising situation (the only two who opposed Anubis were fighting violently with Osiris) she hobbled out of the room. Kealyn was waiting, along with the lok'taur.

"My lady," Kaelyn fussed, "what happened?"

"Later," Sam huffed, still recovering. "Right now we need to leave."

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Daniel was incredibly relieved to feel his pod ringed aboard Jacob's ship. "Oof!" he grunted as the pod fell over.

Jacob opened it up. "Daniel, are you okay? You look like hell."

"Osiris attacked me. Yu tried to get him off of me but ended up getting stabbed. Then Sam came in."

"What?" Jacob asked, stunned. "Who's side did she..."

"It's because of her I made it here alive," Daniel commented dryly.

"But if she's sided with the Goa'uld, why did she help you?"

"I don't think she's with the Goa'uld. It's more like she's with Zeus."

"Tell me later, when you're at your briefing. The poison?" Daniel held it up. "Good, now let's get the hell outta here."

Jacob's shoulders slumped as he opperated the controls.

"Even though she's not on our side anymore, she demonstrated something very important today," Daniel said.

"What was that?"

"She still acts like the two of us are friends. Our Sam is still in there somewhere."

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**I have no clue how many chapters are going to be let but I do know this is going to probably be my longest SG-1 story at present. I'd like to hear any questions or comments...**

**R&R**


	8. Deceivers

"Okay, look," a frustrated Daniel told the two other members of SG-1 and Generals Hammond and Carter. "If she wasn't still Sam, then why didn't she let Osiris kill me and be done with it?"

"If she's still Sam, then why didn't she come home and be done with _that?_" Jack intoned, completely emotionless.

"When I spoke with her--when she came to Yu's quarters the first time Sarah..._Osiris_ tried to kill me, she was almost..." Daniel drifted off, thinking of a way to word his observations. "It's like she thought the two of us were still friends. When I told her that we missed her, she got sort of...pissed."

Jack snorted. "Why?"

"She was fine until I brought that up. She said something about being left behind." Daniel blinked as a theory formed. "I was in recovery for a couple of weeks after we thought she died. Did you go back for her?"

Jack looked uneasy. Even Teal'c allowed some unease to show in his eyes. Jack began slowly, "We did. It was a couple of hours or so, but we did go back. We assumed that a Goa'uld resurrected her--I'm sure you remember me prattling on about that--and that, with all of the sarcophagus's narcotic effects and all, that something might slip. When no one showed any signs of trying to kill us--"

"You let the theory go," Daniel finished. "Well it looks like she was resurrected _and_ turned against us...or at least you, no offense."

"None taken," Jack said dryly.

"How are we gonna get her back?" Jacob asked. They turned to stare at him. "We _are_ going to get her back, aren't we?"

"We can try," Hammond said, determination shining in his eyes.

"General," said Jack harshly, "what if we _can't_?"

"Jack?" Hammond asked, surprised. He wasn't the only one. Daniel figured it might just be guilt over "abandoning Sam, but he was still shocked that Jack would sound so pessimistic. Teal'c also must have thought it was uncharacteristic of their leader, mainly by the fact that his eyes had slightly widened along with the usual eyebrow raise.

"I think Carter's made it pretty clear who's side she's on."

"Jack," Jacob put in, "Sam was adamant about the fact she would turn against Zeus if need be. Daniel, I think we may be able to put that poison to good use after all."

"Sure, I'll go along with whatever you guys come up with, provided it's not the worst idea I've ever heard," Jack said.

"What if Jack and Daniel let themselves become captured by Zeus's Jaffa?" Jacob asked. "Teal'c and I can wait and help you two escape if it gets nasty."

"The poison kills symbiotes," Daniel said, seeing Jack open his mouth. "We would be the only two who could get in and release the poison unscathed. Although, I'm not so sure it'd be a good idea that Jack get 'captured' with me. Sam, as I said before, wasn't happy when I said we missed her."

"And we know she wasn't pissed at you, how?" Jack asked skeptically.

"As I also said before, she acted like nothing had changed between the two of us--like we were still on the same team."

"So have we got a fully developed plan in mind?" Hammond questioned.

"Okay," Jacob began. "First, we go to Thebes, which is where Zeus is presently located. We know that that's where Sam'll probably be returning to. When her ship lands and she's all settled in, I can ring Jack and Daniel down to get 'captured'."

"I take it we're going by ship," said Jack.

"Yes, hence I'll _ring_ you aboard."

"Just checkin'."

"Anyway, hopefully Daniel can keep the poison hidden from Zeus's guards long enough to be led into Zeus and _Maia's_" --he spat the word "Maia" out as if it left a bitter taste in his mouth-- "'throneroom'. When they're taken in, Daniel can release the poison without having to worry if something will happen to Sam. You did say she _wasn't_ Goa'uld?" Jacob asked Daniel.

"The others' comments told me she hadn't been lying about missing me or siding with the Tok'ra," Daniel replied.

"When Zeus and the Jaffa are dead, you will probably be able to get Sam out without much of a fight," finished Jacob.

"You sound a bit doubtful," Jack commented.

"She's a lot stronger than she looks and we don't know if she's bothered to stay in shape for the past seven months," Jacob answered wryly. "We have to count on everything going according to plan, though we can improvise if we have to."

"What about the Tok'ra High Counci?" Hammond asked.

"I probably should be helping with restructuring it," admitted Jacob, "but for now, I say screw it."

"And Selmak's okay with this?"

"No, but she wants Sam back as much as I do."

"Think you can have SG-1 ready in one hour, Colonel?"

Jack stood up, some of his former attitude gone. "Yes, sir."

"Let's move people."

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sam sighed wearily was Kaelyn applied her medical administrations. As a result of her fight with Osiris, Sam now had a lot of bruises, particularly on the wrist that Osiris had grabbed; a cut lip, which she assumed came from when she and Daniel fell; and a shoulder that felt like it could have been dislocated. To her annoyance, her lip had started to swell and her muscles were stiff.

Kaelyn found an ointment jar and rubbed its contents on Sam's lip. She hissed in pain but didn't complain. Kaelyn looked worried. "I can do it if you don't want to," Sam said, but Kaelyn shook her head and resumed.

"My lady," one of her Jaffa said, coming in with a quick bow. "We approach the planet."

"Thanks," said Sam, not really paying attention. Some of Jolinar's memories had been assaulting her since the summit. At the moment, they were vague and she didn't really care about them.

Her thoughts strayed to a different subject. Daniel and her father had probably returned to the SGC by now, which meant that _they_ knew she wasn't still dead. That also meant that a rescue mission would be mounted.

Any thoughts about what the rescue mission would be composed of were soon removed from her concious thought as the ship landed. Zeus was awaiting her a few yards away. She strode over and hugged him.

"Maia." He stood back and held her at arms-length. "What happened?"

"Osiris," she spat.

"I hope it wasn't because _you_ provoked him," Zeus growled.

"Not at that point in time."

Zeus nodded. "Come, Maia. You must tell me of the summit."

------------------------------------------------------------

"The traitorous bastard was working for Anubis," Sam said angrily as she got to the point where Osiris announced her master's identity.

"I find it hard to believe Anubis was able to gain so much power in so little time," Zeus mused.

"He did, unless practically every System Lord lied about the casualties their forces suffered," groused Sam.

In some of Jolinar's memories, she saw someone that looked vaguely like Zeus. It wasn't him per se, just someone that highly resembled him.

"My lord, lady," Acamas's appearance brought her out of her short reverie. "There is something that you must attend to."

"Can it not wait?" snarled Zeus.

"My apologies, but it would probably be best if you saw to it now." Sam noticed that he was being excedingly careful not to look directly at her.

As one she and Zeus stood up and followed Acamas to the Thebes version of a throneroom...

Where Daniel and Colonel O'Neill were kneeling, waiting.

Zeus's eyes flashed. "I hope you knew nothing of this," he said, glaring at Sam.

"I don't know how they found out I was here," she lied, "let alone that they would have come here. They're explorers; maybe they came here to explore."

"The sholva was not found," Amacas put in. "My lady."

"I'm sure that Teal'c doesn't _always_ go on the missions," Sam argued. She missed a flash of uneasiness from Zeus and an exchange of curious glances between Jack and Daniel.

Turning back to the two prisoners, she glared coldly at Jack. He actually winced.

A strange scent permeated the room. Zeus, Acamas, and three other guards sank to the ground convulsing.

Suddenly, the Tau'ri's plan clicked in Sam's mind. Teal'c hadn't come because Daniel would be using a poison the Tok'ra invented that killed symbiotes. She had no idea if her father was on the planet, but it was obvious he wouldn't be in there.

She knelt by Zeus's side, tears forming in her eyes.

"Maia," he whispered. His eyes glowed and, for the first time, Sam saw the host.

She grasped his hand as he said, "Please, forgive us. He didn't..." He drifted off and, with a final sigh, died.

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**Don't worry, everything (for the most part) will be explain in the next chapter, i.e. the surprising speed at which Daniel and Jack were able to arrive at Thebes.**

**I have the rest of the story pretty much figured out, unless Thalia decides to become evil, and leave me. Regardless, I'll try to keep submitting every weekend.**

**R&R**


	9. Back From Beyond the Grave

**Contrary from the message some of you might guess from this chapter, this story will not be a Sam/Daniel story. It's just a team fic that's more Sam-centric.**

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Sam gripped Zeus's hand tightly. Tears slid down her face as she felt his temperature drop.

The floor swayed like a ship in a hurricane and the walls blurred when someone pulled her up. "Whoa, it's okay. We have you now." Sam barely recognized the speaker as Daniel; he sounded extremely distant. "It's okay. Jack, I think the poison's having a small side effect on her!"

"Let's get 'em out."

Daniel looped her arm around his neck and grabbed her waist, pulling her along. She stumbled; the floor wasn't easy for her to focus on. Daniel pulled her hand device off, but she hardly noticed.

After an eternity, she could breathe fresh air. Her head cleared and everything steadied. Coughing, she fought Daniel's hold. "Let me go!" she yelled fiercely. She noticed O'Neill had been dragging Zeus's body along.

"Carter, you'll bring every Jaffa on the planet here if you keep screeching!" the colonel snarled. "Shut up, and that's an order."

"I don't want to go back," she gasped as she tried to struggle free. Daniel was either stronger than she remembered or the poison had an effect on her even without a symbiote.

"Daniel, let her go." Her captor released her. Facing them, she found herself face to face with a zat. "Come quietly," O'Neill threatened, "or I'll make you."

"You _want_ me to come back after abandoning me to Zeus?" Sam demanded, "What happened to 'never leave a man behind'? Or is it because I'm a woman that you thought it was okay?"

The colonel had the decency wince. "Carter..."

"What? What could you possibly have to say to me? You made it pretty clear when you left _me_ behind," Sam snarled.

"What did I say about shutting up?" was his answer.

"I don't take orders from you anymore," she retorted.

He zatted her and her world went black.

--------------------------------------

"Sammy."

Sam recognized her dad's voice and, for a second, her anger faded. For a second.

Her eyes snapped open and she found herself tied up.

"Why are you doing this?" she asked.

"Sam, we're taking you home. Back to Earth."

"I don't want to go back to that planet," she grunted.

Jacob caressed her cheek in a fatherly way. "You had to have missed it."

"The only things I missed were the people who didn't leave me. Didn't lie or betray me."

"Only five, seven months and she already sounds like one of them," O'Neill commented from the doorway.

"Four years and you left 'one of your own' behind. I thought the team's friendship was stronger than that."

He turned away in disgust and left the entryway.

"Would you prefer it if Daniel stayed with you?" asked Jacob.

Sam shrugged. As he walked away, she asked, "Where's Zeus's...body?"

"It's in another part of the ship. I'll get Daniel."

Out of nowhere, fresh grief assaulted Sam. She gasped and managed not to choke out a sob.

"Hey, Sam." Daniel entered and let the door close. Then he knelt down beside her and left her hands and feet loose. "I'm sorry. We just think that you need time away from the Goa'uld." He acted like he wanted to add something else but thought better of it.

"I don't want to get away," Sam said tearfully.

"What happened? Before you were brought to Zeus."

"We went to the planet. There was a firefight when we left. I was killed, apparently you weren't. The colonel and Teal'c left me behind and a _Goa'uld_ came back for me."

"How do you know it was for you?"

"He as good as told me so, and he never pushed me for information and I never gave it to him. He respected that I still felt loyalty to Earth and didn't question it. I never would tell him anything to harm Earth or the Tok'ra and he wouldn't have asked unless his life depended on it."

"How do you know this?"

Sam didn't answer. She couldn't, even if she did have a response. Her throat constricted and there was a painful feeling behind her eyes.

"Sam?"

She shook her head and accidently let a sob loose. Daniel sat down next to her and pulled her into a tight hug. Despite her best efforts, she ended up crying into his shoulder. He remained silent, letting her grieve in peace.

When she was done, she pulled away and leaned against the wall, hugging her knees and staring off into space. Crying hadn't made her feel any better. Now her emotions were a tangled and complex web of confusion and chaos. Too many different sides were pressing in, trying to suffocate her no matter how hard she fought.

"Are you going to be alright?"

She wiped her eyes and nodded.

"Did you want me or Jacob to stay here for the remainder of the trip?"

"It doesn't matter. Either way, I'm going to be scorned by most of the SGC for turning traitor against them."

"From what you've told me, you never said a word to Zeus. I don't see how you've become a traitor."

"You're _not_ the rest of the SGC," she argued.

"True, but you only need to worry about how Jack, Teal'c, and I see you. We are your teammates."

"The colonel thinks I'm a traitor, too. Teal'c...I don't know what Teal'c thinks and..." she drifted off. Irrational, sudden anger flared in her eyes. Daniel blinked in surprise and backed off.

It was Daniel's fault she was here in the first place. He, along with her other "friends", had come up with a way to kill Zeus--someone she happened to really care about--and take her back to the SGC. They knew she didn't want to go back; she was sure she had been adamant when she spoke to Daniel at the summit. Why were they doing this to her? Were they trying to make her suffer for not coming back?

"Leave," she growled.

"Sam, what--"

She abruptly stood up. "Daniel, please. Just go."

Jacob walked in and saw Daniel sitting on the floor, looking somewhat surprised and Sam standing up and looking furious. "Daniel?" he asked casually.

"I-I think I should leave," Daniel murmured, heaving himself up and walking out. "I'll be back later," he called over his shoulder.

Sam wanted to snarl "Don't bother" but decided against it. He _was_ only trying to be a friend even if he had forced her into her present situation. "What do you want?" she snapped at her father instead.

"Selmak has told me something very...interesting about Zeus," he began uneasily.

Sam's fists clenched. "If you don't mind, now is _not_ a good time," she hissed through gritted teeth.

"I understand that, Sammy, but this is something we find rather important," he argued.

She snorted. "Save it for when I'm not--" Suddenly her head swam and her father's featured blurred. "Whoa," she said, leaning against the wall and clutching her head. It felt like Teal'c had placed his hands on the side of her head and was sqeezing it _very_ hard.

Jacob rushed to her side. "Sam..." he said.

"Get away," she growled, feebly swatting at him before she fell to her knees and lost conciousness.

--------------------------------------

Sam moaned quietly as she slowly came around. She was on something soft. A steady and annoying bleeping sound came from somewhere on her right. Others in the room must have not noticed her revival because the continuous hum of lowered voices did not waver. Blearily, she sould only catch snatches of conversation.

"You sure?" Sam thought it sounded like the colonel.

She couldn't hear the long response but recognized Janet's voice. _Janet?_ Opening her eyes, she found herself assaulted by a blinding white light. The last thing she remembered was the cargo ship. How was it possible that her friend got on the ship? A better question was: how did they get infirmary equipment onto the ship? As she moved her head to get a better view of her surroundings and her brain started functioning again, she realized that she was, in fact, actually in the infirmary at the SGC.

"...I can't believe she..." Daniel's voice drifted over before fading once more.

She wondered how long she had been out. It was a few hours at least, since Earth had been light-years away when she...fainted. Gathering her bearings, she found that she had no restraints or IVs. It seemed that Janet's nurses had stuck her in the white infirmary gown and put her in bed. She hit the button for the bed to rise. No nurses came to her aid. The others were to absorbed in their conversation; even Teal'c was distracted, a worried crease furrowing his eyebrows. To her right next to the heart moniter--it appeared that she wasn't the only visitor in the infirmary--was a table with water on it. Sluggishly, she reached for it and managed not to spill anything. It was heavier than she remembered them being. She sipped the water slowly, its coolness refreshing her heavy limbs and still-slow mind.

"It's okay though?" asked Jack. He sounded both angry and concerned. "She's alright?"

"Yes, Colonel. I--hey!"

Sam sighed. The doctor just had to look over as she was replacing the water. Janet strode over.

She checked all of Sam's vital signs. "How do you feel?" she asked.

"I'm fine," Sam snapped.

Startled, Janet paused for a heartbeat and continued checking her friend. The others--well, _Daniel_--had been right. It was still Sam but she was different...almost crueler. She was definitely harder. And crankier. But that was to be expected after all the emotional trauma she must have suffered, and especially now...

Janet figured that Sam was best left ingorant in the meantime.

"Can you tell me your name. And your rank." Sam's eyes narrowed; she knew Janet wasn't giving a request.

"Major Doctor Samantha Carter, Ph.D. in theoretical astrophysics. Happy?"

"As a matter of fact," Janet retorted, "not especially." Sam rolled her eyes. "Look," she said, her tone gentler, "we're only trying to show you we care."

"You showed it back on Thebes." Janet raised an eyebrow and gave her a questioning look. "The planet I was 'found' on," she clarified. She shot the others, who had followed Janet over, a death-glare.

"Hey, I'm sorry we saved your ass," Jack growled.

"You didn't _save_ anything," Sam shot back. "I was perfectly fine and, believe it or not, _happy._ In fact, you made things worse."

"I'm sure," Jack drawled. "Carter, it's not like the Goa'uld are our enemiesor anything..."

"Dammit, sir...Zeus was different. He is-_was_n't like the others."

"Shh," Janet cautioned them warning them with a glance before going to her other patient.

"Oh really."

"Colonel--"

"Don't worry, Carter. I believe you."

"Stop it! Your making a bigger ass of yourself now that I can ever remember you being, _sir,"_ Sam hissed, close to tears. She refused to let them fall; Jack would _not_ have the satisfation of seeing her cry.

"I told you this was a mistake," he said to Daniel sharply and walked out.

"The one thing we agree on," laughed Sam mirthlessly.

"Sam, are you really that miserable?" Daniel asked gently, his voice a sharp and welcome contrast from the colonel's.

"Yes," she spat, still fighting her emotions.

"Well, do you realize that we did it because we thought you needed to get away from the Goa'uld?" he said. "And I will admit that we did make a mistake." He exchanged an uneasy glance with Teal'c, who raised an eyebrow. "Anyway," he continued, "can you accept that we did it out of the goodness of our hearts and take an apology?"

Sam shrugged. "But I won't accept anything from the colonel until he decides he wants to stop acting like an ass."

"Fair enough." Daniel gave her hand a quick squeeze. "We'll leave and let you rest."

"Yeah," Sam replied absent-mindedly. Perhaps the water worked a little too well; a plan to escape was already forming.

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**Sorry this took way too long. I have two excuses: sheer laziness and an now non-existent muse (darn her).**

**R&R**


	10. Maternal Instinct

One day back and Sam still, thankfully, hadn't seen her father. She was still in the infirmary, despite the fact that she was uninjured. Janet simply insisted that Sam remain in the infirmary and, in order to stick with her plan, she played the good little patient and obeyed without quesiton. The colonel hadn't come by since their little fight and she wasn't sorry in the least about him staying away. Teal'c, out of respect for her wishes, also avoided the infirmary. Earlier that morning, General Hammond had stopped by and informed her that, against everyone's better judgement, he was giving her the benefit of a doubt and not having her restrained. She had thanked him and he left with a fatherly pat on the shoulder. It took most of her will power not to pull away.

Daniel had dropped in to say hi just after the general had left and promised he'd be by later.

In the meantime, Sam was waiting for Janet to come back with some decent food. Glancing over, she saw her only roommate. It turned out that the patient next to her was Colonel Reynolds. He had awoken briefly yesterday and it appeared that he was about to wake up again.

"Doc?" he whispered hoarsely.

Unsure of what to do, and knowing that Janet was in a briefing with SG-1, she got up and walked over to his bed. She scolded herself when her legs were shaky at first but, in the few steps it took to get to Reynolds's bed, she felt them get stronger. She scowled when she didn't see any nurses around; it was _their_ job, not _hers_ to look after patients. Even though she knew they hadn't really done that to her, it still felt like it.

"Sorry, Colonel," she said dryly. "Looks like we're alone."

He hesitated, as if unsure to believe his ears. "Major?" he asked.

"Sadly," she replied. "Is there--oh geez," she groaned as a wave of nausea hit her. What had her friends put in that damn gas? she wondered. _I didn't think it supposed to be this effective against _me

"Major Carter?" he said in alarm, sitting up and wincing in pain in the process.

The feeling passed after about a minute. "I'm fine," she hissed. "Is there anything I can get you since it looks like the nurses've gone off duty?" She had no clue why she was trying to help him when he was just going to jump to his own conclusions about her being a traitor when he heard the rumors.

He didn't appear too thrilled to have her acting as nurse to him but said anyway, "Water."

She handed him the ice water sitting on his table. His hand shook slightly as he accepted it.

"What this we here at the SGC have been hearing about you being a Goa'uld, now?" he asked, sounding stonger, his voice less raspy.

"The grapevine's been saying I'm a Goa'uld?" she smirked. Only been back for a day and everything was blown out of proportion. Apparently out she didn't have to worry about him hearing rumors later after all.

"I've been keeping my ears open. The nurses say—excuse me—that you were a Goa'uld's sex slave and been impregnated. The scientists in your department think that you were forced to work for him—it was a him, right?—because of sarcophagus addiction. The achaeologists agree, except they think you willingly became addicted. Senator Kinsey thinks that you were angry with you team and joined up with the Goa'uld to get revenge against them and the entire planet, becoming a host in the process. And most of the officers here have pretty much dispersed into all those groups, even Kinsey's."

"Wow" was the only response Sam could think of. None of those were right. It was rather funny in her opinion but she didn't laugh.

"So?"

"You want the truth or the lie?"

He thought for a minute. "The lie."

"SG-1 saved me. I was literally trapped in a living hell for the past seven months. Zeus—the Goa'uld—completely violated me and tortured me for information. I'm glad he's dead and I'm grateful to Dad, and SG-1 for bringing me home." It was pretty humorous to see startled confusion cross his face.

"I thought I asked for the lie," he said finally.

"Here's the truth," Sam said bitterly. "As you probably know, we were caught in firefight on our way back to the 'gate. Daniel was hit. I thought he had been killed which distracted me and ended up getting me killed instead. The next thing I know, I wake up inside a sarcophagus. After some details I won't go into, Zeus gets me to 'dinner' and basically says, 'Be my queen willingly or I'll make you a host.' As everyone well knows, I'm less than likely to become a host against my own will again, so I said I'd do it willingly. Then I tried to blow up the ship. Zeus caught me but, you know what the strange thing was? He didn't do anything, except point out a few very interesting details about what my _team_ didn't do while I was dead. I stayed willingly. I was happy there. Zeus respected me and respected that, even though I was on his side, I wouldn't do anything to betray the Tau'ri.

"Rumors got a little stretched, didn't they?"

Reynolds didn't have a chance to answer because Janet strode in. "_What_ are you doing out of bed?" she demanded to Sam.

Sam glared at her and, satisfied at seeing her wince slightly, obediently got back into bed. "Colonel Reynolds woke up and, since none of your nurses were around to help him, I thought I'd do it myself," she snapped. "Sorry I was trying to do something nice and non-Goa'uldish."

"Sam, that isn't what I meant and you know it. Yesterday you had a bad reaction to the gas and you need to rest. I don't want to take the chance that it hasn't worn off yet."

Sam didn't respond.

"Colonel, how are you feeling?" Janet asked, ignoring Sam's silence.

"Better than a week ago," he admitted.

"Glad to hear it. I may be able to let you go tonight or tomorrow."

"Thanks, Doc," he said.

Janet nodded. "And, Sam," she said as she walked away, "since you're in good enough condition, Daniel offered to walk with you around the SGC. And you can't go alone."

"Becuase you think I'll try to destroy the mountain?" Sam snarled. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Reynolds flinch in surprise.

"Because I don't want you to be by yourself if something happens," the doctor said firmly.

"_Bull,"_ Sam muttered in Goa'uldish.

She closed her eyes and folded her arms. Another, less potent wave of nausea hit her. She breathed deeply until it passed.

* * *

Footsteps and the sound of a plastic bag neared her bed. Sam opened her eyes. Daniel stood holding a shopping back with what looked like clothes. 

"I, ah, didn't think you'd want to walk around in that," he murmured handing her that bag.

"Thanks," she muttered, still vexed. She stood up, declining Daniel's help when he reached out an arm to steady her. At the end of the infirmary was an open cubicle. She went into it and closed the curtains.

After she changed, she tossed the infirmary gown onto her bed. Together they exited the infirmary, quietly so as not to wake the colonel.

She ignored the suspicious stares of new and old airmen and assessed how tight the security was. It would be crucial to her escape plan.

"Did you want to talk?" Daniel asked gently.

She jumped. "About what?"

"I know what it's like to loose someone close to me, Sam. It's happened more than once." When she didn't say anything, he continued, "I trust your judgement. Something of the host always remains, maybe you saw that part of him. I don't know."

"What's there to talk about?"

"You tell me." There was genuine concern in his eyes. She knew that if she said anything to him, he wouldn't tell a soul.

"Where's Dad?"

"Something came up with the Tok'ra. Understandable since they've had to relocate. He wanted to say goodbye but you were asleep and he didn't want to bother you."

"He probably can't stand to look at me."

Daniel winced. "What?" Sam persisted. "He _is_ ashamed, isn't he?"

"Yeah...but not for the reason you're thinking. Look, I shouldn't have brought the subject up. And, anyway, General Hammond called your brother. He's arriving tonight, ah...in a few hours."

"What?!" She stopped. "What did you call Mark for?"

Daniel gave her a reproachful glance. "He _is_ your brother. The general assumed that Mark might like to know his sister isn't dead."

"Right." They stepped onto the elevator.

"Nineteen," Daniel said to the SF.

"So what did General Hammond say to Mark?" Sam questioned uneasily.

"Jack only said that Mark knows you've been found and that you're alright. The rest is up to you. I think General Hammond just didn't know how to say everything without risking security." Thelevator stopped and they headed in the direction of Sam's old lab.

"I see. How's Cassie? Did she have a good sixteenth birthday?"

"She's fine but I wouldn't say she had a sweet sixteen."

"Why, what happened?"

"Oh, Niirti's experiment came back to bite us in the ass."

"Speaking of Niirti, I'm surprised she didn't recognize you at the summit. How did you get to be Yu's lo'taur anyway?"

Daniel smiled unpleasantly. "I was the only human here completely fluent in Goa'uld."

"Fun."

"Oh yeah, it was."

They located her lab and entered. A heavy-set man with grey streaked hair and a white lab coat greeted them. "Doctor Jackson, you never come to this floor anymore. Wh-who's this?"

Sam stepped forward. "Major Samantha Carter." Instinctively, she held out her hand.

"Doctor Bill Lee. Major Carter? I hope you're over your sarcophagus addiction. Seven months in one of those things is an awful long time." Daniel coughed, obviously trying to mask a chortle. "I'm sorry, you probably want to get reaquainted with your lab. I'll be in the commissary getting some coffee."

After he left, Sam commented, "So Reynolds really wasn't kidding when he told me about the rumors."

"Nope."

Sam glanced around. Her lab hadn't changed much. Even her coffee maker was still there. "Lee's not the brightest person here, is he?" she intoned rhetorically.

"Well, he's smart but...no, he's not the brightest. Now that we're here, is there anything else you wanted to see?"

"Your lab...unless it hasn't changed much either."

"Sorry."

"It's okay." After a small hesitation, she asked, "How 'bout we follow Lee to the commissary."

"If you want to."

When they arrived, it commissary was fairly empty since it was later in the evening. Sam didn't notice Lee there and figured he took a longer route back to her—his?—lab. They got a couple of trays and got into line. The room had gotten noticibly quieter after the two had moved into line.

Ignoring this, they got their "food" and retreated to the far corner. Sam fiddled with a piece of droopy lettuce while Daniel spooned something the menu called soup.

"Another thing that hasn't changed," she observed.

"What?"

"The stuff the commissary staff serve."

He pulled a face. "I don't think that the food would change even if you put it in a box and locked it in a pyramid for another millenia. I can just see an archaeologist reopening the pyramid at Giza and finding a loosely tied box of perfectly preserved food from here."

"Not quite what I meant."

"That was still the mental image I got."

"So what time was Mark's flight going to arrive?"

"Eight thirty, if I remember right. Did you want me to take you home so you could change?"

Sam glanced down at the BDUs Daniel had given her and nodded.

"And General Hammond already gave me permission to take you to the airport—so, yes, he is flying—if you wanted me to. And...I'm sure Cassie would want to see you again. We could get rid of this stuff and take her out for some real food."

Sam wrinkled her brow distastefully as she considered her choices: stay here, eat the science experiment the base called food, wait in the infirmary, and then pick her brother up; versus the alternative: she, Daniel, and Cassie all go and eat something half-way decent, go back to her house and change, hang out, and possibly all three of them pick her brother up. To her, the second one sounded so much better, but she had another idea.

"What if we picked up Cassie and then got Mark. That way we can all eat" she said.

"That works, too."

* * *

Sam fidgited with the bottom of her t-shirt nervously. What would Cassie think? Would she hate Sam like Colonel O'Neill? Did she even know what Sam had done? 

"Sam, don't worry," Daniel said consolingly without even looking over. "Cassie loves you no matter what. You're like a second mother to her."

"I hope she still sees me that way."

"Why wouldn't she? Wait, don't answer that. You shouldn't have to. You shouldn't even be worrying. The whole time you were gone, Cassie kept calling me up until I promised her she'd be one of the first to know you're back."

"With the excpetion of the hundred-something people at the base."

"Yeah, but I didn't add that part."

Daniel's SUV pulled up along the curb in front of Janet's house. The light in Cassie's room was on but that was it.

"Didn't you call?" Sam asked.

"I thought I'd surprise her."

They got out and approached the dark house. Rock music wafted softly down through the window upstairs. Daniel knocked on the door with no respose. Even after he knocked harder, no one answered the door. He took the key out as they heard a petrified cry. He jammed the key into the knob and, with Sam in the lead, they pelted up the stairs.

Cassie's door was locked and they could hear a deep voice and whimpering inside. Daniel held up a hand and counted to three. Together they hit the door which fell easily under their combined weight. The owner of the deep voice, a boy about Cassie's age, whirled around. Sam raced to Cassie who was huddled beneath the window.

The boy was still looking at Daniel. Slowly, he reached into his jacket and pulled out a pistol.

"Whoa, hey!" said Daniel. "Don't shoot, we don't want to hurt you."

_Yes, we do,_ thought Sam, hugging Cassie to her. Daniel glanced briefly at Sam and she caught the message.

"Who the hell are you?" demanded the boy, waving the gun around.

"We're from the air force, along with Cassie's mother," said Daniel, lowering his voice. Sam stood up, quietly disengaging Cassie, and quickly knocked the boy out. Daniel had ducked down as soon as Sam's fist connected in case the boy was able to fire off a shot as a reaction.

Sam hurriedly picked Cassie up and put her on the bed. The girl's arms Sam waist tightly. Sam grunted; it hurt more than she would have expected.

"Here," said Daniel, moving between the two. Cassie clug to them both. "Guess we still work like a team, eh?"

"Luckily," snorted Sam, temper rising. "I should've done worse than knock him out."

"_No,"_ said Daniel firmly, "you shouldn't've. You did the right thing."

Cassie shakily moved away to observe her rescuers. Her eyes widened and a brilliant smile illuminated her tear-stained face. "Sam!" She looked like the same eleven-year-old Sam had grown attached to five years ago as she hugged Sam again.

"Are you alright?" Sam asked, worry making her words come out as a snap. She softened her tone. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, fine. Or, at least, I will when this guy's sent to juvie."

"I'll call the police," said Daniel, getting his cell out. He gestured out the door mouthing _I'll just be there._

Sam nodded. "How are you really? What happened?" she asked when he had gone.

"I'm fine. He's an ex. Didn't want me with my new boyfriend. Bastard." Realizing what she said, she covered her mouth. "Sorry. It just slipped out."

"What did?" Sam said conspiatorally.

"Nothing. I'm so glad you're back. Is it true you were held captive by a Goa'uld?"

"Yeah, but..."

"But...?"

"He wasn't what I'd call a captor. He was different. It's hard to describe." She didn't think it'd be wise if she told Cassie _everything_ she really thought and felt about Zeus.

Cassie sensed Sam didn't want to talk about the this subject much so she changed it. "So did you and Uncle Daniel come over just to say they found you?"

"We were going to take you and my brother out after his plane arrived. _If_ your mother agreed."

"Did she?"

"We haven't asked yet."

"Actually," said Daniel from the door. "We have. She said to go ahead. It saves her from cooking tonight. Oh, and the operator said the police would be by in a few minutes. I haven't said anything to Janet about this yet."

"Why don't you get changed. Daniel and I can take _him_ downstairs," suggested Sam.

Cassie nodded, her eyes upset again.

Sam and Daniel carried Cassie's ex-boyfriend down and set him on Janet's couch. "How hard did you hit him?" Daniel asked incredulously.

"Not hard enough" was the response.

Cassie came down a few seconds before the police knocked on the door. "I don't—can't answer anything tonight." She said nervously. "I want him out of here but...they can hold him for a day or two, can't they?"

"It's Friday," Daniel said.

"I thought the weekend thing was for adults," said Sam. "Does it count for minors?"

"It might."

Daniel opened the door.

* * *

**Yes, I know. Evil cliffhanger. Luckily, though, the reason this chapter was so long is because my muse came by for a visit and left enough inspiration for another. Yay!**

**R&R**


	11. Brotherly Love

**A/N: I altered the last chapter a little bit. Some of what happens in this chapter may come out differently than what was read before. It's nothing big, but I thought it was worth mentioning.**

* * *

After Sam, Daniel, and Cassie finished speaking with the police, they hurriedly crowded into the SUV. Sam sank into the passenger's seat with a grateful sigh and closed her eyes. Not that she'd readily admit it, but she was feeling unsettlingly tired and worn. Putting her exhausion down to the stress of the past couple days, she reopened her eyes. Daniel switched his vehicle into reverse. 

After a few uncomfortable minutes, Sam asked Daniel, "So how long was Mark planning on staying? Or did he mention it to General Hammond?"

"Jack said something about Mark being here for a couple of days."

Sam's mouth twisted into a small grimace. She wasn't thrilled about having to wait to pull off her escape plan. She decided she'd just go through with her plan, which she was still mentally fine tuning.

"Sam?"

"Hmm?"

"Are you sure you're alright?"

Sam thought about Cassie in the back and decided to refrain from saying much to Daniel. "About as alright as someone can be after something like this happens," she said, lamely trying to sound cryptic.

He nodded and they finished the drive to the airport in a slightly less uncomfortable atmosphere.

When they arrived at the baggage claim to wait for Mark, it was about 8:25.

"Where did you want to go?" Daniel asked suddenly.

Sam and Cassie, who'd each been lost in their own thoughts, jumped. "Go?" Sam returned.

"For dinner."

"I don't really have a preference," shrugged Sam.

"Helpful," Daniel observed. "Cass?"

"Same here. Don't care."

"Thank you." Daniel hesitated for a moment and Sam secretly guessed he'd been waiting to suggest a place. "Would O'Malley's work."

Sam smirked, but had to admit to herself that she was craving a hamburger about now. "What better way to introduce my brother to the local culture?"

He flushed ever so slightly. Trying to avoid his friend's amused expression, he glanced over to where Mark would be coming and saw it flooded with people. Out of the crowd, he saw a blonde male with a mildly familiar face. "Hey, Sam. Is that your brother?"

Sam looked towards the entrance to the terminals. "Yeah."

He raised an eyebrow at her suspiciously casual tone and she shrugged self-conciously in response. If Cassie noticed any discomfort on Sam's part, she didn't say anything.

As soon as Mark saw his sister, he barely contained the urge to jump in the air, give a loud whoop, and race to pull Sam into a tight embrace. It took him a moment to register that she wasn't alone. If Sam's descriptions were anything to go by, he knew that the muscular, blonde man in glasses was Doctor Jackson. He didn't recognize anything significant about the teenage girl that with them was, though.

It wasn't the best welcome he could have asked for; all he really wanted to do was be with his little sister. But he couldn't expect her to come without support if her experience was a tragic as George had suggested.

He settled for quickly approaching the trio and gathering Sam into a warm hug. When he released her, she stepped back and gestured to the man standing beside her. "Mark, I'd like you to meet Doctor Daniel Jackson. And this," she said, placing a hand on the girl's shoulder, "is Cassie Fraiser. As you two know, this is my brother, Mark."

Mark's lips curved up in a strained smile as he shook Jackson's and then Cassie's hands. "Great," he said, trying to sound cheerful. "I'm just going to get my luggage and I'll be set."

"I can help you if you need me to," Daniel offered.

"No thanks," Mark waved the gesture off. "I only have the one big bag."

He hurriedly left to retrieve his bags.

"He seems friendly," commented Daniel.

"I don't know what he has up his...," Sam coughed uncomfortably and ammended, "what his problem is."

"That's probably his way of coping with stress or nerves," Cassie suggested.

Sam and Daniel looked at her. "What?" she asked. "That's how my-my dad would act when he was under a lot of pressure."

Sam rubbed Cassie's shoulder soothingly. She knew from personal experience that it took a long time for someone that age to cope with a parent's death. She could only imagine how Cassie felt with both her parents dead.

"Okay, let's go," said Mark, announcing his return. His bag rolled along noisily behind him. Daniel and Cassie led the way out to the parking lot and to Daniel's car. Sam and Mark tagged uneasily after.

Once they were settled into the car, Mark then asked, "So what were the plans while I was here?"

"Well," began Sam, "tonight, the four of us were going to eat at O'Malley's. Tomorrow . . . we'll just have to see." Naturally, she couldn't mention anything about her planning to leave that night. Or morning, depending on how one looked at it. Either way, she'd be gone before Colorado Springs awoke.

Daniel cast a suspicious glance in her direction. His brow furrowed further when her face became a picture of innocence. Mark over-saw the whole exchange with careful indifference. Something was going on between the two of them and he wanted to find out what it was.

Sam was beginning to regret going along with this whole idea. It was too uncomfortable, thanks to Mark's being so tense. She decided that she'd better talk to him when they got out.

Daniel pulled into the parking lot and found a spot near the entrance of the restaurant. When they got out, he said, "Cassie and I'll get us a table," raising his eyebrow pointedly at Sam.

"Why—" started Cassie but Daniel was already pushing toward the door. "Hey!" she grumbled indignantly and grudgingly allowed herself to be led away.

"I agree with the girl," Mark stated, turning to his sister.

"'The girl' has a name," Sam hissed through clenched teeth. "And it's Cassie Fraiser." Mark's expression held confusion and slight hurt. She sighed. "This is why we didn't go in with Cass and Daniel. Don't you think you're being a bit rude?"

"Uh, well," began Mark uncomfortably, "not intentionally, but Sam, give me a break. I mean, I had to go through seven months with my little sis labeled MIA with no way to tell if you were alive or dead. Now I've seen for myself that you're okay."

"That still doesn't explain—"

Mark chuckled. "What?" Sam asked in exasperation.

"You have no idea how much like Mom you are." She folded her arms and raised an eyebrow. "Look at you. I mean, you've always looked like her but that added with a lecture about my manners and that look you're giving me now . . . it's really scary."

Her eyes softened and she shook her head. "You're avoiding the subject."

"Okay. I came here with the intention to hang around my little sister. Not her boyfriend and his ex wife's daughter."

"What?!" Sam could've sworn her eyes bugged out. "Whoa, whoa, whoa. You think Daniel is-is my _boyfriend_? And Cass is his daughter. Geez, Mark. You tend to jump to conclusions but this is the worst yet! Daniel and I are just really, really close friends. Just like we're really close friends with Cassie's mom, who, by the way, was never married to Daniel. I'll give you details about my friendships later if you promise to behave."

"Yes, Sam, I'll be a good boy." They strode over to the entrance and Mark opened the door for Sam.

"Thanks," she said. Mark couldn't be sure but he thought he heard amusement in her voice. His ears redened. He was both relieved and embarrassed. Because of his over-insightfullness, he'd made a complete idiot of himself infront of two people who obviously felt as close to Sam as she felt to them.

They headed over to the "Please Wait to be Seated" sign where a plump blonde waited. "Hey, Sam!" she greeted with a bright smile. "It's great to see you back. We were all worried 'bout you. Some of the girls were a bit disappointed 'cause Jack quit harrassing them," she said with a wink.

Sam laughed. "Hi Sal. It's great to see you again, too," she returned. "I take it Daniel's at the usual?"

"Yep." Sal gestured them through. Sam led Mark to the back. She obviously knew where she was going so Mark followed closely, not wanting to get too separated in the very crowded restaurant.

"You come here often?" Mark asked for the sake of conversation. It was pretty clear what the answer would be.

"Oh yeah. Well, I used to. My 'team' and I came here almost weekly."

Mark ignored the hateful way she said team, and intead commented, "I bet you kicked ass at pool." He figured that since it was O'Malley's Bar and Grill it meant there was likely to be a pool table somehwere. The place was certainly big enough to sport a game room.

"Yep. People from the base were afraid to go against me 'cause I'd usually win. Usually. There are some pretty good players."

"You still got the Harley?"

"It wasn't sold that I know of. I was only MIA so it should still be sitting in the garage." She conviniently left out the part where it had been _known_ that she wasn't technically missing.

They finally met up with Cassie and Daniel. True to his word, Mark behaved and the atmosphere was noticably lighter as a result.

* * *

Sam and Mark entered the dark house after waving good bye to Daniel, being as Cassie had already been dropped off. The answering machine was blinking and Sam was relieved to see very few messages had been left throughout the time she was gone. Hitting the button, she realized that the first message was in fact left several hours ago just after she and Daniel had headed for Janet's. 

'_Carter,'_ said a familiar voice. Sam's eyes narrowed as she recognized the colonel. _'I don't care _what_ is going on with you, I am still your commanding officer and—'_ Without waiting to hear the rest, Sam deleted it and moved on to the next. That one, too, was deleted when she heard Teal'c's voice speaking.

"What was that about?" Mark asked.

"Nothing," Sam snapped. Mark winced and she instantly felt ashamed. It had been an innocent enough question. "Sorry. My nerves have been frayed for awhile. I'm still a little frustrated with my CO and that's had some effect on how I take it out on others," she apologized.

"You were going to tell me about your non-relationship with you friend," Mark reminded her.

Sam snorted. He was like a dog with a good bone. "I'll show you to the guest room and you can leave you bag in there. I can make some coffee while we talk."

"Coffee? This late?"

"It's only ten," Sam retorted innocently. "I've had it later." Mark looked at her oddly.

"Because of deep space radar telemetry."

"What?" Sam hastily back tracked. "No. How do you think I survived college? I got the Ph.D. through _very_ hard work." _Really convincing, Sam,_ she admonished herself. Mark was still giving her a weird look plainly saying he wasn't too impressed with her cover. He was like Jacob in that way. They both could see through the telemetry lie. _Telemetry lie?_ she thought, laughing silently. _I must be getting tired. It'd probably be better if I made the coffee _now.

After she gave Mark a quick tour on the way to his room and he deposited his bag on the bed, they made their way into the kitchen.

"So what's the story?" demanded Mark.

"There's not much to tell," Sam said, trying to cover her amusement. "Five years ago, Colonel O'Neill, Murray, Daniel, and I found a little girl. Daniel and I were particularly attached to her. But Janet adopted her instead of me."

"Right. Why didn't . . . Daniel adopt her?"

"It's kind of a long story but initially, Cassie wouldn't let me out of her sight she was so scared. I got to know her better as a result. Daniel hung around because the other two were observing a black hole for research."

"I'm still not following a lot of this."

"To get the whole story, you'd have to get pretty high security clearance. I'm sorry, but I don't think that nosing into your sister's life is a very good excuse," Sam chuckled. "That explain Cass somewhat. Look, the story with Daniel and me is that we both got along well when we first met. We've been close ever since. There's nothing stronger than friendship between us."

"Ah. Actually, the only reason I was so interested in your relationship status is—um, well, first I want you to know that I just want you to be happy. But I have this friend. I think you should give him a chance. It's pretty sudden, I realize that but he's a good guy." It had been hard not to think about Zeus today and for the first time, she'd managed to push him to the back of her mind. But her brother talking about getting into a new relationship so soon after Zeus's death—two, three days was it?—brought thoughts of him back to the surface. Mark seemed oblivious. "His name's Pete Shanahan. I have his number with me if you're interested. Sam?"

Tears began to cloud her vision and a wave of nausea hit her. She hurried to the bathroom and lost her dinner. Mark had followed her and held her tightly when she'd finished. She clung to him and cried silently into his shoulder. "I'm sorry," he murmured, rubbing her back sootingly like their mother used to. "I didn't know the idea'd upset you this much. Here, let me help you to bed." He pulled her up and easily led her to her bed. She curled into a fetal position, her head resting on the soft pillow, as tears trailed softly down her face.

"Did you want me to stay with you tonight?" Mark offered.

She shook her head, avoiding looking at his face. "'Night, Sam," he whispered, closing the door.

After a couple minutes, Sam was able to collect her bearings. She had to get away tonight. Her resolve might not stand another day. Emotions would have to wait.

Suddenly, a cold, hard anger settled in, halting her tears like no comforting shoulder could. The colonel and Teal'c had left her body behind on a God-forsaken planet to be picked up by a Goa'uld. The colonel and Daniel then proceded to kill the Goa'uld who she'd come to care for, even love. The colonel, damn him to Netu, could barely stand to look at her now. And, even though it was only her second official night back on Earth, here Mark comes along trying to hook her up with some idiot friend of his. It didn't matter that Mark wasn't aware of the heartbreak the past few days brought her, just the fact he was offering it so soon was ridiculous in itself.

She settled down to wait, clutching every ounce of her fury that she could.

* * *

Sam grasped the ladder in the shaft as she tried to quietly open the heavy metal door. The ride here had been uneventful. Her Harley, Old Reliable, had gotten her safely to the SGC without anyone's being aware. 

The door came loose. Bewfore she opened it all the way, she activated the device on her wrist. If it worked properly, which it would, it activated an EM pulse that scrambled her image through the security cameras, effectively rendering her invisible. The only real threat would be avoiding random SFs in the hall. The control room was a different story.

This level was the armory. She hurried over, praying that the people watching that footage wouldn't notice a bunch of doors opening and closing themselves. To be safe, she grabbed two zats and a loaded P-90. After putting the P-90's strap around her shoulder, she firmly grasped a zat in each hand. She also made sure to wear full mission gear with the exception of the uniform. Mentally, she braced herself and trotted out.

Luckily, she encountered no one until she reached the control room. The six technitions didn't even notice her until after two of their number were hit once with a zat blast. The other four were quickly taken out and she set to work on the computer.

First, she closed the doors on either side of the entrances to the embarkation room. Next, she closed the blast door. Finally, she began the dialling sequence, making sure to lock everyone else out should someone try to stop the 'Gate form dialling. As she anticipated, klaxons went off, alerting the entire base to her prescence. For a final touch, she set the computer to automatically dial the Nox as soon as she was through the 'Gate. She scurried out and hurtled into the embarkation room, closing the doors behind her. She scrambled to do the same on the other side. This was way too easy. She laughed aloud.

The 'Gate was on its fifth chevron when the blast door finally came up, revealing her teammates, Harriman, General Hammond, and a dishevelled-looking Mark, who looked stunned beyond words. She folded her arms cockily and raised an eyebrow at her audience.

The wormhole activated. She turned, and just as she was about to pass the horizon . . .

"Carter," the colonel said via mic. "Sam. Don't do this."

It was that plea that decided her. Eight months ago, she would have stayed. Then she was over her infatuation with Daniel and seen Jack O'Neill. He'd cared for her, too, she knew. But then her left her behind and that cut her deep. In the end, it was Zeus, a Goa'uld, who was there for her. She had cared for him very deeply. Then he was murdered.

She walked through the 'Gate.

* * *

Mark had awoken to the sound of a door slamming and a motercycle speeding off. The first thing he did was check Sam's bed. As soon as he registered the fact she wasn't there, he took her car and—after quite a bit of time searching—found Daniel's appartment and woken the poor archaeologist up. After he told Daniel that Sam was missing and he heard her take off, Daniel ran out to Sam's car and barely waited for Mark to get in before taking off for the mountain. 

It was only a matter of time until Daniel was in George's office, explaining what he thought Sam was about to do. Mark was lost as soon as he heard the words "Stargate" and "another planet." He didn't know why but Colonel O'Neill and Teal'c—as he soon learned to called "Murray"—were also in the office when Mark and Daniel arrived.

Then he heard the alarms going off and the others pelted down the stairs, which lead to a sort of control room. A metal door was in front of what he assumed was actually a window. Several techs were lying on the floor unconcious. Daniel clumsily got the door to lift up and Mark found himself fascinated by the large, circular device in the room, which was spinning fairly quickly. Or at least, the part with all the strange symbols on it was spinning. It took a few moments for him to notice Sam was standing calmly before it, arms folded, eyebrow raised; waiting behind a large yellow line. One of the techs said something but Mark was too entranced to comprehend anything.

He could have sworn he jumped a mile when a blue vortex shot out of the device missing his baby sister by mere feet. She turned and strolled up the ramp and was about to go through the rippling water, for want of a better word, when the colonel pushed the tech aside and said into the mic, "Carter." His sister halted and looked back. "Sam. Don't do this."

Indescision passed through Sam's features for just a second before she turned and passed through the water without a backward glance. No sooner had the "water" vanished that the device began to spin again.

"Shut it down," George ordered.

"I can't, sir," the tech—a sergeant—said. "She locked me out. It's set to dial the Nox homeworld.

"'Homeworld?'" Mark croaked in disbelief. "What the hell was that? George, I swear—"

"Calm down, son," George said with a fatherly pat on the shoulder. "We'll explain what you've just seen."

- oOoOoOo -

Mark was lead to the infirmary where—as he quickly discovered—Cassie's mother worked.

"I _could_ give him a mild sedative for the shock," she later conceded reluctantly to the colonel.

After he received Janet's miracle shot, he immediately felt himself calm down immensely.

"Doc, is there anything you can do for Carter?" the colonel—Jack—asked.

"Like what?" demanded Janet. "I'm not trying to be the pessimist here, but Sam could be anywhere now. I don't want her gating in her state, either, but I don't think we have much say in the matter at the moment."

"Her state?" asked Mark, still attempting to understand all he'd seen. "I know she was a little off but I don't think she's—"

"What Janet means," Daniel interjected haltingly, "is—we did want to tell Sam first but that obviously didn't work out." He hesitated. "Sam's pregnant."

* * *

**I love cliff hangers. They're so fun to work with. Did anyone guess? I tried leaving hints but I'm about as good at that as Jack is at being tactful.**

**First important endnote: I finished this very late at night . . . or very early in the morning, depending on how you look at it, so the second half might not be of the upmost quality.**

**Second note: There are approximate two chapters left: A very short one and then an epilogue. I'm not making any promises on their timing because we all know how reliable I am. Oh, and don't worry, I'll try to resolve everything from Zeus's strangeness to what happened to Cassie's ex boyfriend.**

**R&R**


	12. The Truth At Last

"Sam's pregnant," Mark repeated in disbelief. Daniel couldn't blame him. There was a lot to take in.

"Almost a month. Not even she knew. We didn't know what would happen if we told her," Daniel explained. "At the moment she's a little unstable."

"Apparently, no thanks to us," Jack interrupted.

Mark sat down on the nearest gurney. Even with the sedative, his head was pounding and his heart was racing. He knew he'd begun in the middle of a huge story, so he needed to catch up. As much as he hated to, he had to drop the mystery of his sister's pregnancy and go back towards the beginning. "Can you explain to me . . . . Can you tell me what that _thing_ Sam went through is?"

Everyone looked to Daniel. "You're up, Danny," said Jack.

Daniel sighed. "But General Hammond was working on getting Mark clearance to read our reports."

"But you can still explain about the 'gate, right?"

"I _can_."

Jack put his face in his hands, groaning. "How 'bout this: Can you listen to and obey me for once?"

"Why are you being so insistent? Shouldn't we wait for General Hammond anyway?"

"Look. Daniel, in the long run—and I'm just saying that _in the long run_—it's my fault this entire situation happened in the first place."

"Not entirely," said Janet, looking over a file. "This is Sam's latest blood work. The general needs to see this."

"What is it?" Daniel called to the retreating doctor.

"Something that'll save her a courtmarshal if we ever find her," was the answer.

"Well I won't argue with that," Jack grunted. "C'mon. I suppose we'd better find out what it is." The foursome proceeded to the general's office.

"—levels in her blood indicate a drug of some kind," Janet was saying.

"What's this now?" Jack interjected innocently.

Janet sighed and explained again, "The blood work indicated some sort of drug in Sam's system. I've never seen anything like it. Remember when you told me Sam reacted to the symbiote poisoning? I think it was the chemical in the poisoning negating the effects of the drug."

"Wh-why?" Daniel asked, furrowing his brow.

"It involves what the drug was made of. I was able to figure it out on the way up."

"And it was . . . ?" Jack began expectantly.

Janet grimaced, looking mildly queasy. "You _really_ don't want to know, sir."

"I'll take your word for it," the general conceded. Jack nodded. If Janet was disturbed, then he really didn't wantto know. "And Mark, I'll need you to sign some papers and you'll be able to read the reports. I'm assuming they've been mentioned?"

Mark nodded and approached the desk as George pushed a small pile of papers and a pen in his direction. "Thanks," he mumbled. He hoped the reports would explain what the heck "symbiote poisoning"and the "stargate" were. He was also curious about something Jack had said earlier. That it was his fault in the long run. If nothing else, that piqued his interest. But still, he assumed it had been his forcing Pete on Sam that caused her to leave. He had no clue what possessed him to suggest a boyfriend for Sam so soon after coming home. Initially, it was so Sam wouldn't be alone, but he knew his reasoning was crap. All he had to do was look at the result. But he had to know what Jack meant.

In a spilt decision, he asked if he could talk to Jack later. The older man nodded before turning his interest to Daniel, who had opened his mouth to speak again.

"Wait, if the effects of the drug were negated, then why was Sam so . . . Goa'uldish, for want of a better word?" he asked.

"I wish I could tell you," Janet replied sadly.

In silent, mutual agreement, the "meeting" was ended. Only Jack and Mark stayed back. "What's on your mind?" Jack drawled.

Mark brushed his hair back with his fingers; it was an old habit that meant he was uncomfortable about something he was going to say. "When you said it was your fault this had happened . . . what did you mean by that?"

The colonel's eyes became cooler. "I left her behind," he simply said and joined the other two on their way out.

"But what does that mean?" Mark muttered to himself. The reports had better explain.

* * *

Barely a month of searching for a suitable planet in a cargo ship, Sam realized a couple things. The first was . . . unexpected, to say the least. After a second missed period, she had to admit to herself that she was pregnant. She guessed that that was one reason her friends acted like they needed to walk on eggshells around her.

The second was that she couldn't go back. Kinsey would surely have figured out how to convince the president she should be locked up for treason. Even without being in prison, she didn't know how she could look the others in the eye again. Not after the way she behaved. She would never say it, but she was ashamed of herself.

After she left the SGC, she traveled to multiple planets, knowing the DHDs kept a sort of record of the planets dialed. Using the pieces of Jolinar's memories she could gather, she gated to the nearest planet with a black market. Once there, she somehow managed to trade for a cargo ship and scant supplies. Over the past month she'd been forced to steal what she needed to survive. Her ultimate goal was to fly to one of hers and Zeus's planets.

Even a month later she was no closer to the furthest of Zeus's territory. If it was still Zeus's territory. The System Lords worked fast when it came to getting new planets to conquer.

When she'd been on the ship for a very uneventful two months, she found herself on the outskirts . . .

And face-to-face with a ha'tak vessel. Ba'al came on her screen.

"Maia, it's wonderful to be graced with your prescence. Now tell me, where's your charming husband? It's been a long while."

"Go to Netu," Sam spat, shaken to have been snuck up on so easily.

"My dear, is that how to greet someone in their home territory? With Zeus's death, I have full rights to his system."

Sam blinked. How would he have full rights? Then the truth hit her. She wasn't a System Lord; had never been close. Only Zeus's status kept the others from destroying her.

"I can see you're thinking. Am I right in guessing you didn't know that I knew of your husband's fate? I highly doubt he would allow his wife and child to travel unaided in a cargo ship coming from enemy space, let alone without him." He smirked. Sam scowled back. Too bad for him he wasn't quite as smart as he gave himself credit for. "I'm in a good mood today and will allow you a twenty-four hour headstart out of my territory. You were aware that we were neighbors?"

Not waiting for an answer, his image blinked off. He fired a couple of warning shots in her direction. Sam was brave, not stupid. She knew when she was out-numbered and out-sized. But instead of jumping directly into hyperspace, she merely turned her ship around and flew away. Hyperspace wouldn't be an option until her day was almost up.

_Son of a bitch,_ she thought angrily. Practically every region of space was overseen by a Goa'uld. She'd never been liked or respected by the System Lords. How would she find a sanctuary safe from Goa'uld clutches? An answer almost immediately emerged. Kheb was a possibility. It was protected by Oma Desala. Mother nature. _You can't be much safer than when mother nature herself watches over you,_ Sam thought wryly. She knew that she'd probably have to meet Oma half way if she and the baby were going to be safe. If anything, she was going to have to follow enlightenment, or whatever it was Daniel talked about when they were on the planet before.

She set the coordinantes and settled back for another long wait.

- oOoOoOo -

In reality, the way to Kheb was much shorter than it was to Zeus's—now Ba'al's—territory. Sam jumped to hyperspace as soon as the day was up and reached Kheb in a matter of hours. By the time the cargo ship reached orbit, she was nearly sick with exhaustion. After she landed, she cloaked the ship and crawled over to her make-shift bed, quickly falling into a deep sleep.

When she finally woke up she saw the sun peeking sleepily over the trees. She soon assessed that she was in serious need of food, water, and relief. After the latter was taken care of, she scrounged through her supplies and found both food and drink.

Her stomach didn't rebel and she was grateful. It was nice not to have to worry about loosing meals. She stood up, ignoring her protesting ankles, which had seen too much standing in the past couple of days.

Because she'd landed near Kheb's stargate, she quickly found the path to the temple. The journey was torture. Her calves and ankles throbbed and sweat coated her face, plastering her hair to her head. Determined, she refused to stop until the temple was in sight.

As soon as it came into her line of vision, she hesitated, panting heavily. The place certainly didn't look like it had been abandoned for nearly two and a half years. If fact, it was quite to the contrary. There was absolutely no sign of SG-1's small battle from their previous visit. The plants looked well trimmed and watered, though it was hard to tell from the distance Sam had stopped.

She hesitated, unsure of whether or not to continue. On one hand, it might be unfriendlies that had kept the place in order. On the other hand, Oma didn't strike Sam as someone who'd abandon a planet where someone may have still tried to find..."enlightenment," hadn't Daniel said it was?

Still absorbed in indecision, she didn't hear the soft footsteps approaching behind her.

* * *

"Died?" yelped Mark, reading the report on the Nox's planet. He, along with the rest of SG-1, had taken refuge at Jack's house. He was comfortably seated at one end of the couch with a stack of reports, while Daniel and Teal'c lounged in two chairs. Jack was scrounging for beer.

Daniel jumped and a loud _thunk_ resounded from the kitchen, followed by a swear word. "What the—" Jack growled, his face appearing over the bar.

"Th-the report says you _died_," Mark explained lamely, his face taking on a reddish hue.

"Which time?" Jack asked testily.

"Wh-the first time. The Nox. How can you sound so casual about dying?"

Jack shrugged. "Let's see . . . from the time Daniel opened the 'gate up until now, it's close to five. Including Car-Sam, it'd be just over that, I'd guess." No one missed how his voice became frosty when he said Sam's name. Mark didn't push the subject, so he went back to reading after nodding his thanks. He'd barely read a couple paragraphs when someone approached him. Jack offered him a beer, which he took. "Hey," Jack said. "You don't mind if I turn the TV on, do you?" Mark shook his head. Daniel and Teal'c followed suit, albeit reluctantly.

"Cool." He hit the power buttom and "The Simpsons" theme immediately came on. Jack sat on the other side of the couch and stretched out, completely relaxed to all appearances. Mark suspected he was still a little sensitive about broaching the subject of Sam.

It wasn't until he'd finished that and another report that he thought about something else. "What about Dad?"

"Wha—?" Jack asked, still engrossed in the TV.

"Ja-ack," groaned Daniel.

"What?"

"Can't you hit mute?"

"'Kay." Jack aimed the remote in Daniel's direction. "Say something."

"_Why?"_

"Damn. It didn't work."

Daniel sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Very funny."

Seeing every eye was on him, Jack hit the mute button with an unintelligible grumble. "What?" he asked, glaring pointedly at Mark.

"I asked about Dad. I know he's involved with this project somehow. What does he do?"

Jack leaned forward and shuffled through the pile of unread reports. With a triumphant "Ha!" he handed the report to Mark. "I'm making you skip a bit, but you'll catch up." With that, he turned the volume back on and Daniel exhaled loudly in frustration.

As Mark began to read, he recognized Sam's style of writing. He was a bit lost at first with whoever Jolinar was, but when he found out, his gut clenched. Sam had been a Goa'uld. He recalled a time about three years ago when Sam had called in the middle of the night. She'd sounded petrified and upset, so Mark had done his best to console her. That had been their first conversation in five years. Initially, he suspected Sam had been involved with another guy like Jonas Hanson, but dismissed it after more conversations with his sister. She must have called because of a nightmare the Goa'uld's memories caused. He didn't understand much about the Goa'uld, but he knew the important details.

The more he read, the more the mystery surrounding his father began to clear.

* * *

"We here on Kheb mean you no harm."

Sam whirled around, adrenaline surging in her veins and giving her a huge spurt of energy. In front of her stood a short, sweet-faced young woman.

"Are you here to follow the path of enlightenment?" she asked innocently. The shrewdness behind her eyes said that she may be innocent, but she was by no means a weak simpleton. Sam narrowed her eyes as she felt a sense of familiarity stir. The woman had waist-length brown hair tied back in a loose braid, gentle green eyes, and a soft, tan, round face. She carried a hand-woven basket filled with various articles of clothing. Sam sensed no immediate threat.

"If it means my baby and I can have protection from the Goa'uld," Sam responded, unsure of whether the woman would invite her in or send her back.

The woman's eyes found the ever-so-slight curve of Sam's stomach. Understanding, radiated from her face when she met Sam's eyes again.

"We will not talk about this out here. Please. Dine with me and my sister. I would like to see how true you wish to be to the path." She offered an arm and helped Sam limp into the temple. "I am Shoshanah." Another woman, bearing a sharp resemblance to Shoshanah approached. "This is my sister, Raevyn."

Sam observed Raevyn as a second, stronger sense of familiarity struck her. It was in the way her darker green eyes shone with a mild interest and in the shape of her face. _In fact,_ Sam thought, stunned, _the two of them look almost like . . . ._ But it wasn't possible.

"S-Sam," she stammered, shaken by her possible discovery. "Hey, by any chance . . . you wouldn't happened to be related to someone I knew. He was tall, like you," she motioned to Raevyn. "Come to think about it, you could almost be twins."

The sisters exchanged surprised glances. "You've seen Jaesin?" Raevyn asked, her eyes lighting up eerily like Zeus's would on rare occasions. The occasions reserved especiially for Sam, making her feel loved in a way Jonas never did. It struck Sam as ironic how like a Goa'uld Jonas was.

"Jaesin? I-I didn't, ah, that's not the name I knew him by. He-he was Goa'uld."

Raevyn and Shoshanah's eyes filled with a strangely detached sorrow, thought Raevyn looked the most distraught. "You speak as if about the past," Shoshanah observed softly.

Sam fought the grief that threatened to overwhelm her once more. "I'm sorry," she whispered, unable to speak any louder as her throat constricted so tightly it hurt.

"Let's go inside," Raevyn said.

They entered the same room Daniel and the monk had conversed in. Shoshanah and Raevyn sat down and Sam noticed they were barefoot. Wanting to show that she was still interested in the path, she removed her boots and socks, and gratefully sank to the floor.

"Please tell us what led our brother to his fate," Shoshanah said gently.

* * *

**A/N: Because of the long delay, my muse decided to think up more things for me to write. I'm pretty sure that I can finish this up in two to four chapters. But don't take my word on that because my muse is too unreliable.**


	13. Mark Gets A Clue

A/N: In the last chapter, the parts on Earth and with Sam ended up being off time-wise. Sam was ahead of them by three months. Earth will have caught up in this chapter.

There's also some minor angst. Not really my writing forte, but it's in there anyway.

The muse also appreciated the reviews. The more reviews, the happier the muse, the more I have to write.

* * *

"What happened to Jaesin?" Raevyn repeated when Sam hesitated in answering. At the woman's words, she absently put a protective hand over her stomach.

"Can you fill me in on what happened?" Sam asked, procrastinating. "To Z-Jaesin before became a Goa'uld?"

Raevyn raised an expectant eyebrow at her sister. Shoshanah gazed back before blinking serenely at Sam. "Life on our home planet was . . . redundant. Jaesin and Raevyn thirsted for adventure that could never be theirs. Until I found some ancient scrolls in a buried chamber. It was in a dead language I had studied, so I read the script to them. It spoke of wonderous races far more technologically than we could ever hope to be. On it were six symbols that Jaesin recognized from a device. He dialed put nothing happened. By chance, he hit a seventh button and a wave of water shot out of a large stone ring I thought to be a chappa'ai. When the water stayed upright, Jaesin stepped closer to discover what it did.

"Understand, Sam, our brother always had a lack of caution about him that was never cured with age. He jumped into the water, thinking it nothing out of the ordinary. He thought it would be fun. We never saw him again."

"But you obviously went through the, ah, chappa'ai at some point. Otherwise, you wouldn't be here. You said your home planet wasn't very advanced." Sam was still having trouble coming up with a way to tell them about their brother . . . and his child.

Shoshanah continued the story, eyes plainly saying she knew what Sam was doing. "A few years later, I unearthed a second address. Raevyn had insisted we burn the first, something I highly regret allowing her to do. Needless to say, we dialed the second address and hit the same symbol Jaesin had. The chappa'ai came to life again. Raevyn stepped through, determined to find our brother. I, afraid that I would loose my only other sibling, went through seconds after. We came out here and followed the path to the temple. Oma Desala visited us and offered us a second life. I chose to follow enlightenment." She refused to say any more, simply gazing at Sam in a fashion similar to Teal'c.

"What," began Sam, deciding to wing it, "I think happened to Jaesin, after he came out of the chappa'ai, was he got captured by a Goa'uld named Zeus and became his host. Do you know about the Goa'uld?" Shoshanah nodded and gestured her to go on. "I don't know how long they were blended but one way or another I was captured. My friends . . . the four of us were explorers, escaped." She swallowed nervously. This was delicate territory. "Zeus made me a queen, but without having a symbiote. He was different. I-I loved him. I was his wife" She laughed bitterly. "Something I never thought I'd hear myself say. But you wanted to know what happened to him, so I'll get on with it. One of my friends saw me, and my dad used some intel to figure out which planet Zeus and I were on. Two of my friends used a gas to kill Zeus. Jaesin only had moments to live." She choked, pain growing behind her eyes as she held her tears at bay. "He spent his last seconds asking me to forgive them. There wasn't anything to be sorry for."

"'Anything?'" Raevyn echoed skeptically. "_Zeus_ forced you to be his queen."

"I actually came to care for him. He gave me a chance to go to my old home once. I refused."

"And it is his child you wish to protect," Shoshanah said, her eyes betraying nothingof how she was feeling or what she was planning.

"It won't be taken away, will it?" Sam demanded sharply, remembering Shifu. She didn't think that the child would be Harcesis, but there was a very slim possibility.

Shoshanah shook her head. "There is no need to that I am aware of."

"Good," sighed Sam, relieved. Residue tears slid down her cheeks. Besides the meals, the other thing she disliked about her pregnancy was her being overly emotional, and having constant mood-swings. She quickly wiped the tears away. "But I _am_ genuinely interested in following enlightenment." It was a half-truth, but that was better than a flat-out lie, wasn't it?

"Do you have a faith, or are you governed by the laws of your technology?" _"Laws of technology?"_ Sam echoed silently. Was that supposed to mean science? She hoped so because the former wasn't an option.

"I never really had a faith," she said uneasily.

"Open your mind. Not everything has rules and limitations. Try to meditate," Shoshanah instructed.

Sam shifted into Teal'c's kel'no'reem pose and easily slipped into a deeper level of her conciousness, as Teal'c had instructed her to do after Jolinar's possession. Surprisingly, she could still hear Shoshanah's voice coaxing her with further instructions.

* * *

Life at the SGC went on fairly normally. Mark had left soon after Sam's disappearance, but he promised he'd be back soon for an extended stay. Daniel knew that he wasn't leaving until his sister was safely returned. He hoped Mark wouldn't have to wait too long.

Jacob had busied himself with trying to find any trace of his daughter. Thus far, he'd had no luck. Daniel suspected the Tok'ra High Council had a hand in keeping him just busy enough to make sure his progress was slow. All they knew was that Sam had visited a black market, got a ship and supplies, and wasn't seen since.

Jack acted normal, but Daniel knew he was still hurt by Sam's anger toward him. Granted, he conceded, Jack deserved it after the way he acted around Sam. He just wished that the older man would stop punishing himself. It wasn't obvious, but someone who was close enough to Jack O'Neill could see his internal toment and guilt. Only Sam's return and forgivness could ease the pain.

Teal'c, Daniel noticed, was trying to hide his true feeling on the situation as well. He was sure Teal'c blamed himself for Sam's running away and Jack's guilt. Daniel had found out sometime later that it was Teal'c who convinced Jack to return after Sam was shot. It seemed that Jack had forgotten this small fact. What Daniel couldn't understand is why Teal'c didn't see fit to inform Jack. He thought Teal'c would be . . . Jaffa enough to do it.

General Hammond was naturally unhappy about the news. Sam was like another daughter to him. In more ways than one. Not many people knew that General Hammond was Sam's godfather.

Janet was more business-like. She obviously missed the woman who'd become one of her close friends. The other nurses had always been too bubbly for her liking, so she stayed away from most of them if she could help it. Now that Daniel thought about it, she'd drifted away from the rest of SG-1 as well.

Cassie was in a minor state of depression. To her, she'd confided in Daniel, it was loosing a mother all over again. Sam had done so much for her but up and vanishes all of a sudden; neither Daniel, Janet, nor Jack had ever given full details as to how or why Sam left.

Mark was coping. He was still obviously overwhelmed by everything. But the fact that he was coming back for a while showed that he'd be okay. Daniel had to admit he was impressed. The man was coping better than expected. But he had the nagging feeling that Mark was hiding something. Both Mark and Jack had some identical emotion in their eyes but Daniel didn't know Sam's brother well enough to figure it out.

Daniel had mixed emotions. He couldn't help but feel there was _something_ he could have done to keep Sam from leaving. The other part knew that she wasn't in her right mind. Hadn't he been the same way after Sha're died? Or at least he had in the vision she gave him just before Teal'c shot her. After so many contradicting thoughts, Daniel mentally shook himself and focused solely on the present, not the "could haves," "should haves," or "what ifs." None of that would help get her back.

He stretched out in the uncomfortable seat near the baggage claim. Mark's flight back would arrive soon and Daniel found himself in the same position as he was three months ago, only he was alone this time.

Finally passengers began emerging from the terminals. Daniel stood and headed over to the baggage claim to wait for Mark there.

Sure enough, a familiar face sqeezed its way through the crowd and stopped next to Daniel. They shook hands in greeting.

"Anything on Sam?" Mark asked.

Daniel shook his head and raked a hand through his hair. "Sorry." Mark had been asked the same questioned repeatedly for the past three months and the answer never changed.

Mark mimicked the action. "_I'm_ sorry that I keep bugging you. It's just that . . . she's my sister. I just . . . I wish she hadn't run off. Dad hasn't had any luck either, has he?"

"His superiors keep finding excuses for him to be busy. He's doing his best. We all are."

"Is there anything new we'll have to discuss later?"

"Not exactly. Just news you can be updated on. So how long are you staying?"

"Indefinitely. Or at least until Sam's found. And my neice or nephew." Mark grimaced as luggage began making an appearance. "Everything else is okay, but that's the one thing I can't get my head around. I understand why she left. Not everyone gave her much of a reason to stay—"

"That's not why she left. At least, not entirely." At Mark's blank stare, Daniel clarified, "After my wife died, I would have given almost anything to run away. I couldn't. My work at the mountain wasn't done." Mark nodded. "She ran away from the pain. We were a partial cause of it, but she still has her inner demons to fight with." The appearance of Mark's bags but a halt to conversation until they arrived at Daniel's SUV.

Daniel heaved the luggage in back and they got in. "You said there was something on Sam," Mark pushed as soon as Daniel started the engine.

"Jacob discovered she 'gated to a planet with a black market. From there she got a ship and supplies. She as good as vanished after that."

"That's it?!" Mark demanded angrily. "Three months and who knows how many damn aliens working on finding my sister and her baby and that's _all you could come up with!"_

Luckily, they were taking a short cut through a fairly abondoned neighborhood because Daniel slammed the brakes hard.

"Dammit, Mark, you aren't the only one who wants her back!" Daniel shouted, his pent up feelings boiling over. "I could name at least a dozen people who miss her. Do you think we're not working? That we enjoy not knowing if she's dead or not? That is a very real possibility, but we refuse to accept that because—" He stopped, his throat swelling shut. This was the first time he'd ever yelled at Mark, but the man pushed him too far. It was a good thing Daniel was Mark's escort; none of the others would be so nice as to simply yell. _"We never leave anyone behind,"_ he hissed. His eyes felt moist. Was he destined to keep loosing people in his life? His parents, grandfather, Sha're, Sarah, and now Sam. All he had left were Jack, Teal'c, Janet, and Cassie. He couldn't bear to loose any of them. Even contemplating it was too painful. "You aren't the only one who cares for her. We all love her. We all miss her. You have no idea what's being done to get her back. All of us spend every waking moment we can afford to search."

"I just hate feeling so helpless," Mark finally said, sounding pretty upset too. "She's my little sister."

Suddenly, Daniel realized what emotion he recognized in both Jack and Mark; it was the same thing he was sure they all felt: guilt. But why did Mark feel guilty? He hadn't said or done anything that Daniel knew of. _Unless he said it the night Sam left,_ he thought, slightly angry.

"What happened? What went on between the two of you the night she . . . took off?" he questioned intently.

How did you—?" Mark shook his head like a wet dog. "Never mind. Not important. I—" he coughed uncomfortably and ran a hand through his hair. "I was an ass. A friend was interested in her, so he egged me on to hook them up. Holy Hannah, I was such an ass," he groaned.

Daniel put his foot on the gas again. He didn't comment, but he was furious inside. Sam was so unstable after she came back. How could Mark not see that? Didn't he have even the slightest notion that it was too soon? Daniel glanced over, but still said nothing. The other man was miserable enough.

His eyes moved to the clock and widened in surprise. He didn't realize it had gotten so late. It was nearly two in the morning. He sighed, "You can stay in the guestroom tonight. I'll help you find a hotel tomorrow."

"'Kay, thanks. But . . . " Mark hesitated uneasily and ran his hand through his hair again. "I was wondering if I could get a VIP room at the SGC. I want to be there when you bring her home."

Personally, Daniel didn't think Mark was in much of a position to be asking for something quite as extensive as a VIP room, but he simply said, "I'll ask General Hammond."

"I know you don't think I deserve it. Heck, _I_ don't even think I deserve it, but I want to be there for her. Let her know I really do care and that I'm sorry." He rubbed his face tiredly. "I-I'm just not sure how I should go about it. It sucks, you know? I never bothered to get very close to her or Dad after Mom . . . you know. We had some good phone conversations a couple years after she began the program, but there was nothing. I'd tried to separate us too much. Then, the one chance I have I screw up. You, Colonel O'Neill, and Teal'c are closer family than me. Do you, I don't know, have any advice on how to approach her?"

Daniel, still seething, said, "Look, I understand, probably a little better than you think, but I can't intrude. Neither can Jack or Teal'c. It's your business and, no offense, your problem. It's no one's place to tell you what to say. All we can do is help you."

"That's all I'm asking for," Mark responded thankfully.

They continued the drive in silence.

* * *

R&R 


	14. Meridian in a Nutshell

Sam opened her eyes, feeling the immense relaxation that came from meditation. She savored it a moment attempting get up. The effort was backbreaking. At least that was how it felt to her.

In the three months she'd been on Kheb, several things had happened. Most important, she'd felt such a complete peace of mind that hadn't been there in what felt like ages. Still, she wasn't devoted entirely to enlightenment and didn't know if she ever could or would. Physically, her stomach had swelled. She thought that it was a little large but knew that everyone was different when it came to pregnancy. Both her back and her ankles began to pain her, so she couldn't do as much to help Raevyn and Shoshanah work on the temple.

She began to feel so much better that she would have considered going directly back to Earth if it hadn't been for the lack of a GDO. And she wasn't eager to go running to one of Earth's allies in order to go home. Besides, she had a promise to keep.

Before she could get too far in her attempt to stand, everything around her began to change and she ended up in the 'gateroom with Daniel and someone she recognized as Oma Desala, with Daniel looking just as confused as she felt.

- oOoOoOo -

Mark jumped into Sam's car as fast as possible. George had just called saying there was an emergancy at the SGC that he may want to come for. He immediatly thought something happened to Sam, and thus sped the whole way up the mountain. Mind bent only on reaching the mountain, he failed to notice any laws he may be breaking.

George had refuted his request for guest quarters, but allowed him to use Sam's house for the time being. Jack gave him his spare key and Mark made himself at home. The only things he kept away from were Sam's room, except to clean up and organize for her return, and her Harley, which he didn't touch at all.

After awhile, he'd discovered a second guest room. An idea formed and, after he asked Sam's teammates for help, began work on the baby's room. It was almost finished. Mark had been working on it when he got the call.

He effortlesly passed through security and headed for the commissary. That's where George had said SG-1 would be. If the SFs and other occupants of the mountain wondered about a civilian running in the halls, they were good at hiding it. Not that Mark cared enough to pay attention. When he entered the commissary, his heart sank even as brief surprise flared inside.

There were four people he recognized instantly, none of which were Daniel. One was his dad, wearing very weird clothing he supposed was appropriate for Tok'ra. The other was a younger man, high in rank but not Tok'ra, if the clothes were anything to go by. The other two were naturally Jack and Teal'c.

Jack and Teal'c were the first to see him since they faced the door. "What're you doing here?" Jack asked. Mark thought he sounded almost like he was grieving. With growing dismay, he saw the normally stoic Teal'c looking very similar.

"George called me. What happened? Where's Daniel?" Mark flinched when his father turned so fast it was amazing he didn't get whiplash.

"Mark?" he asked. "Why are you here? How did you even get clearance this high?"

"It's not important," Jack said gruffly. To Mark he explained, "We were offworld and Daniel somehow stopped the place from blowing while simultaniously getting a motherload of radiation poisoning in the process."

"He's dying?" Mark croaked, disbelieving.

"He's not gone. He'll find away to come back. Our team _always_ does," Jack stated firmly. Mark didn't think his aged friend could let himself believe otherwise. Daniel had told him that when he first met Jack, the older man was suicidal. Mark didn't ask why and Daniel didn't tell him. Jack glared at the younger man out of the corner of his eye while still somehow managing to look at Jacob. "In fact, that's why good ol' Jacob and Selmak are here."

It took Mark a moment to realize who Selmak was. But before he could say anything, the younger man said, "I understand what you're implying, Colonel, but I've done my best to make amends, _including_ commiting high treason against my people."

"Hey, I'm not faulting you for cowardice. As for the treason part, it won't undo what you did to Daniel, so I'm just gonna have to tell ya it's too bad."

"Can I-can I go and see him?" Mark asked, awkwardly interupting.

"Mark," Jacob said, his voice strained. "He's almost too far gone. There's nothing you can do or say to change that."

Mark crossed his arms stubbornly and glared at his father. He felt like he owed or, strangely enough, _would_ owe Daniel something.

"I believe Mark Carter and Jonas Quinn could watch from the observation room," Teal'c put in, his expression just a little too guarded. Mark wondered if anyone else caught it.

Jack nodded as Janet strode over looking exhausted and grief-stricken. "He's ready."

As one, Jack, Teal'c, and Jacob stood up and followed the small doctor out. Mark and Jonas followed uncertainly. When they arrived at an isolation room, Mark and Jonas went in one door while the others took the second. The two ascended the stairs and Mark's fists clenched in surprise when he saw Daniel. He was reminded of an Egyptian mummy.

Inside, Jacob approached Daniel. The others were hovering behind, expressions now filled with cautious hope. He held a strange, curry-comb like device over Daniel, which activated and cast an orange glow over the white wraps.

His father hesitated and the glow faded away. "His condition is grave. I do not know if I can save him. And even if I can, I do not believe I can restore his full healthy state," his dad said. Or rather, Selmak. Mark didn't like the vocal change.

"Do it," Jack encouraged.

Selmak nodded and continued.

- oOoOoOo -

Sam blinked in surprise, first at Daniel then at Oma. "What's going on?" she asked.

Daniel, still looking confused at her sudden appearance, closed the gap between them and embraced her. "How?" He directed the quesiton at Oma.

"You have one final burden that must be laid to rest," she responded vaguely.

Daniel apparently understood. "Sam," he paused, struggling for the right words. Finally he said, "I'm sorry."

"For what?" Sam was genuinely puzzled. He didn't need to apologize that she was aware of. None of her team did, really.

"I just . . . feel like there was more I could have done-_should_ have done to get you to stay."

"No. I know I was pretty unreasonable. There was nothing anyone could have done. I already had it planned out. Mark's coming was just a catalyst."

"Because of what he said."

"He told you?"

"Yeah. He was pretty upset by it, too."

"Daniel," warned Oma gently.

"I know."

"Know what?" Sam demanded.

Daniel sighed. "I'm dying. Radiation poisoning. Oma's helping me ascend. Jacob's trying to heal me. I'll be right back." He disappeared and suddenly reappeared, the colonel standing several feet away.

He ignored Sam, who looked torn between tears and shock. "Daniel?"

"Yeah?"

"Did you want something?"

"Yeah. Tell Jacob to stop."

"Why?"

"Because I'm ready to move on." They turned to Sam when she gave a strangled sob.

"I'm sorry," she said hastily and tried to wipe the streaming tears off her face.

Jack made no move to comfort her. Instead, Oma approached her and began talking quietly.

"So you're just giving up?" Jack said.

"No. No, I'm not giving up. Believe me." They watched as Oma backed away from Sam and became a glowing white being. She flew through the inactive 'gate and left an active wormhole in her wake. "You remember Oma?"

"Sure. And strangely enough, Carter, too."

Daniel decidedly ignored the comment about Sam. "I think I can do more this way. It's what I want. I have to go now. Everything's gonna be fine. Please, Jack. Tell Jacob to stop."

- oOoOoOo -

"Jacob. Stop." It was so quiet they could barely hear it in the observation room. Mark thought he must have misheard until he heard his father's responnse.

"Are you serious?"

"It's what he wants." _How could he know?_ Mark thought furiously. It's not like Daniel sat up in bed and said, "Let me die. Stop my only chance."

"Does someone else wanna tell me what to do?" Jacob asked, still unsure.

"Just let him go."

Jacob stopped and Daniel's EKG flatlined. "No!" hissed Mark. Jonas winced beside him.

"Colonel?!" Janet cried, moving to help Daniel. Before she got too far, Daniel's body began to glow. Mark gasped in amazement as "Daniel" started to rise. The glowy thing stopped at the ceiling.

- oOoOoOo -

"I'm gonna miss you guys," Daniel said quietly. Sam came over and hugged him tightly. She backed towards the Jack, biting her lip.

"Yeah, you too," Jack responded.

"Thank you both, for everything."

Sam nodded, still biting her lip. Daniel knew she was trying to stop another sob from escaping. Jack nodded, for once out of quips and comments. "Yeah," was all he said.

Daniel walked up the ramp. With one last look at his friends, he turned and walked through the 'gate.

- oOoOoOo -

"Daniel" rose and disappeared into the ceiling. A sideways glance told him Jonas was just as amazed as he was.

"I'm sorry," Jonas seemed to shake himself out of a trance. He left the observation room.

Mark, too, left but went into the isolation room instead. "Wha—? What was that?" he whispered, just loud enough for the others to hear him. Teal'c and Jacob were looking at Daniel's bed in a sort of reverence. Janet looked crushed. Only Jack and George's faces remained even close to semi-expressionless.

"Not here," Jacob said, touching Mark's shoulder and leading him outside. The others followed.

Janet was the first to speak. "Sirs, with permission, I'm just going to—"

"Go ahead, Doc," Jack said. Neither George or Jacob bothered to take the order back. "Where'd Jonas go?"

"He just left after Daniel . . ." Mark had no idea _what_ Daniel did.

"Ascended," said Teal'c.

"Yeah," Mark agreed. "After he ascended."

"I saw Carter," Jack announced unexpectedly.

"What?!" Jacob exclaimed. "Where? How?"

Jack coughed and gestured that they get out of the hall. George told them that they would talk in his office.

"Colonel," he said expectantly once he was seated behind his desk.

"I don't know how to describe it. This was Daniel's area of expretise. One second I was in the iso room, the next Daniel, Carter, Oma Desala, and I were in the 'gateroom. Well, not _that_ one. Like I said, this isn't my area."

"Are you telling me my Sammy's another Ancient?" Jacob demanded.

"No," Jack said slowly. "I don't think she was. She was too upset. You think she'd be happy if she really was ascended too. That and she was pretty obviously . . . going to have a baby."

"So she was fine," George said, the question of confirmation hanging between them.

"Other than the fact she was pretty upset, yeah. Oma didn't seem too worried about her. She talked to her a little but I don't think it helped much."

"That's more than I've found," Jacob admitted. "Until now, it was like she disappeared entirely. She could of ascended and we'd've been none the wiser."

"Alright. Jacob, you're welcome to have an extended stay if the Tok'ra High Council lets you. SG-1, go home. Take a week off. You won't be able to go on any missions until you can find a replacement anyway."

Mark saw mutiny on Jack's face, but the older man wisely kept his mouth shut.

About an hour later, Jacob was back on the Tok'ra home world (his request to stay with his son for a couple days was denied), and the remaining half of SG-1 plus Mark left the SGC.

* * *

Back on Kheb, Sam awoke to find herself lying on a bed with a cool cloth being pressed to her forehead, but it meant nothing to her. Numb with grief at the knowledge Daniel was gone for real, she turned on her side and wept.

* * *

**Sorry this chapter was shorter. Inspiration for it was running out. Good news is I have the end in sight but I'll keep my mouth shut so there won't be any misinformation.**

**Oh, and any vagueness in this chapter was intended. Most of it was due to a certain muse not helping enough, the rest was me just having an off day.**


	15. Traitor?

**A/N:**_ Takes place at the beginning of Season 7. This is one year later on purpose. Mainly because it was the easiest way for me to end this. Yes, everyone, this is the last chapter. I thought it'd be nice to finally have a super long chapter since it's been a really long time since I last updated and to celebrate the end. Little bit AU. Enjoy!_

* * *

"And what of Daniel Jackson?" Teal'c asked.

"Ah, I'm not sure I did a very good job of convincing him," Jack said. First Carter, now Daniel . . . again. He briefly closed his eyes, supressing a groan of self exasperation. Why did he have to act like such an ass when Carter was recaptured a little over a year ago? He knew the answer, of course; he was angry. And he had directed his anger at Carter without regard for the consequences of his actions. He couldn't remember a day when he didn't wake up regreting his every action since the day she was taken by Zeus.

His internal torment was doubled after Daniel . . . _ascended_. He shouldn't have let Daniel stay behind with Jonas. Because, no matter how matter Jack tried to convince himself to the contrary, to him Daniel died. Just not a perminant death. And no matter how much he told himself that it was Daniel's choice, he was still the one who okayed the archaeologist's request to stay. Daniel would never have done differently, so there was technically never a choice, and Jack felt like he had condemned his friend.

First Carter, and now Daniel. He even had a second chance with Daniel, who was now Arrom, and completely blew it. Again. Why couldn't he ever word anything right? He'd driven Daniel away again.

He looked back at Daniel's—_Arrom's_—tent. The man in question walked out, caught sight of him and Teal'c, and shuffled over.

"I've given this a lot of thought and . . . ." He ran a hand through his hair. "And I'm sorry. I can't take the chance that I did something. Before I . . . died. I can't remember anything and I'm not sure I want to take the fallout for something I did that I can't remember doing. Ah," he laughed nervously, "if you understood any of that."

"Bull," Jack said harshly. At Daniel's taken aback expression, he immediately softened his tone, "Daniel, you didn't _do anything_ wrong. Well, you may have disobeyed my orders a few times, but aside from that—"

"Jim, I-I-I don't . . . ." He took a deep breath and tried again. "I want to stay here. I'm sorry."

"If that is what you wish," Teal'c interjected before Jack could come up with a response, "Daniel Jackson." He fized Jack with a look that warning him against saying another word to Daniel. Jack glared back but inevitably lost the staredown.

"Fine," Jack said tightly. "We'll leave you with a GDO and give you SG-1's IDC code."

"Ah, I don't think that's necessary," Daniel protested, but Jack waved a hand for silence.

"Just humor an old man, will ya?" Daniel clamped his mouth shut and nodded. "And the name's—" Jack shook his head. "Never mind."

"I really am sorry," Daniel said. Jack studied his young friend. He could see sincere apology in Daniel's eyes.

"Yeah, well," Jack shrugged. "You'll miss me once you remember who I am." _If you remember who I am_, the cynical side of him said.

_Ah! He'll remember. Even if I have to drag him back to the SGC myself and knock some sense into his bull-headed skull._

"Besides," said Daniel, "your men are going to be here for a week looking at the ruins."

"Yeah. Yeah, there is that." Jack smiled sardonically.

"Colonel O'Neill. Perhaps we should collect Jonas Quinn and return to Earth. General Hammond will wish to debrief us," Teal'c suggested.

"Uh, right," Jack agreed although he had no idea what Teal'c was talking about. General Hammond had told them via MALP that SG-1 had permission to stay for three days with no need to report at all unless it was an emergency. They couldn't stay the entire week because Lee aparently had a brilliant plan to go against Anubis. He assumed Teal'c had an excuse emergency worthy to go back.

"Oh, well then I guess I'll see you around," Daniel said. He frowned and turned away, looking thoughtful.

Jack didn't ponder in it. "So what do we need to report to General Hammond?" he intoned quietly to Teal'c behind Daniel's retreating back.

Teal'c raised an eyebrow and went up the stairs. Jack followed, not seeing another choice. At the top, Teal'c headed in the direction on the gate. They met Jonas at some ruins and Teal'c grabbed him by his vest.

Jonas sputtered a few incomprehensible complaints before looking back at Jack. Jack shrugged noncomittally and Jonas, after assuring his strong teammate he would cooperate and come, was freed.

"What's this about?" he asked. "Sir?"

"Beats me," Jack shrugged again. They met Teal'c at the gate, which he was in the process of dialing up. "Say, Teal'c, buddy, care to share with the class?" Teal'c merely looked at him with an arched eyebrow. "Or not."

Teal'c entered the IDC code an stepped through the gate. Jack and Jonas followed closely.

- oOoOoOo -

"Shh, baby," crooned Sam as her eight-month-old, Ariana Nicole, began fussing noisily. She held Lizzy to her shoulder, rocking back and forth, rubbing her back soothingly.

She winced as Ariana began screaming. The wails echoed and bounced off the walls of the temple. "Shh, shh. Baby, what's wrong?" she groaned. _I am _so_ not suited to motherhood_, she thought dispairingly.

Shoshanah entered Sam and Ariana's room. "Is everything alright?" she asked pleasantly.

"Not especially," Sam replied, trying very hard not to show frustration towards the aunt of her child.

"Let me see." Shoshanah eased Ariana into her arms and bounced her a little bit. Ariana's screams ceased but she still looked less-than-thrilled. "I believe she is merely hungry."

Sam reclaimed her child and sighed. "I'm a horrible mother."

"Why do you say that?" Shoshanah asked, furrowing her brow and looking genuinely confused. Sam knew better. The young girl often knew more than she let on.

"It's been eight months and I still don't know my own daughter." Sam studied Ariana, who was actually calming down. She had a marvelous head of hair, which promised to be a soft brown. Her eyes were a beautiful shade of blue green. It was an exact blend of Sam's and Jaesin's. She wasn't a particularly chubby baby and had potential to be exceptionally gorgeous when she was older.

"The mother-daughter bond takes time to form," Shoshanah reassured. "It is not unusual for it to take this long."

"I have always wanted a kid." Shashanah gave her a reproachful look. "Kid is another word for child." Reproachfulness was replaced by bemused understanding. "I wanted one so badly. I knew I would never be a prime example of mother material, but I'd hoped I could at least bond with the child."

"As I said, it takes _time_." Shoshanah stood to leave. "You might want to feed her before she becomes fussy again." She was halfway through the doorway when she paused for a second. "Raevyn and I shall miss you."

Sam opened her mouth to ask her what she meant, but young woman was gone and Sam was alone with Ariana. She decided to take care of her daughter's needs before calling Shoshanah up on exactly what she meant

- oOoOoOo -

"Back so early?" Hammond questioned as SG-1 stepped through the horizon on the other side.

"Indeed," Teal'c intoned. "General Hammond. We request permission to bring some of Daniel Jackson's posessions to him."

"_We?"_ Jack mouthed to Jonas. _"Since when were _we_ involved in this?"_

"I don't see why not, but may I ask why?"

"It may help him regain some of his lost memories."

"If they can be found again."

Jack's hackles began to rise. "Now General—"

"Colonel, I don't like the idea anymore than you do, but we have to be realistic. What if his memories can't be regained? I'm not saying there isn't a chance, but I want you to think about the possibility."

"I thought about it. Didn't like it." Jack turned serious. "General, what's the harm? If it has a chance of bringing his memory back—"

"Go, Jack." Hammond waved his hand in dismissal. "Leave when you're ready."

"Thank you, sir." SG-1, not bothering to get out of their gear, went to storage to find some of Daniel's possessions.

---------------------------------------

Nearly an hour later, between the three of them, SG-1 had procured Daniel's glasses (or an extra pair, at least), the infamous picture of Sha're, and several photos of his parents and SG-1 while Sam was still in it.

On the way back to the gateroom, Jack took the time to wonder how Sam was doing. If all fared well, she'd have had her baby. He assumed she'd found a hospitable planet; she didn't look like she was in immediate harm a year ago. Still, so much could happen in a year.

They entered the embarkation room and he signaled Harriman to dial up. Soon the gate was activated and they were on the other side in the ruins of Vis Uban. Not surprisingly, "Arrom" wasn't there to greet them.

"Ah, not that I don't want to see Doctor Jackson, but I was in the middle of—"

"Go." Jack cut Jonas off impatiently. _Scientists!_

Jack and Teal'c quickly walked back to the city and strode over to Daniel's tent. "Knock, knock!" Jack said loudly, rudely smacking the tent flaps.

"Yes?" came an amused voice from behind. Jack spun around te see Daniel standing a few feet away, arms folded, looking more than a little entertained by Jack's loud spectacle.

Clearing his throat uncomfortably, Jack said, "We come bearing gifts."

"Gifts?"

"Uh, yeah. Come take a look." Daniel hesitantly came forward, looking very unsure. "Ya know what? Go ahead and try these on." Jack handed Daniel his glasses. After studying them for a second, Daniel put them on.

"Wow," he said. "That's different." He suddenly bore more of a resemblance to the Daniel Jack knew.

"Ready to go home yet?" Jack joked, not really expecting an answer.

"Ahh . . . . "

"You don't have to say anything, just look at the stuff we brought."

"Um, okay," Daniel responded, still sounding unsure. He led them inside the tent where Jack and Teal'c deposited the pictures. He picked up a team photo. Jack remembered when it was taken. Daniel and Sam were more than slightly inebrated. Sam, who had her arms around Teal'c and Daniel, was stumbling, pulling Daniel (and as a result, Jack) down, only to be held up by Teal'c. Janet had been nice enough to take it. She'd been unofficially invited to that particular team night. "Who is she? Where's Jonas?" Daniel asked, jerking Jack out of his memory.

"Jonas wasn't a member of the team then," Jack explained.

"Oh. So who—"

"You tell me." Jack left, Teal'c shadowing him.

He shoved the tent flap aside, ignoring the flapping noise as it hit Teel'c and then fell back into place. Jack didn't hear Daniel following. _I guess we gave him some stuff to consider,_ Jack mused.

"Colonel O'Neill," Teal'c said softly as Jonas, who had been waiting at the stairs, came over. "We should be returning."

Jack looked at him blankly, uncomprehending. What had the big guy heard that he hadn't? It wasn't _impossible_ he would have missed anything, being so distracted by retrieving Daniel's possessions.

"Uh . . . ?"

"I think perhaps Daniel Jackson would appreciate some time to think. He never did appear to like someone hovering over him as he worked on Earth. I do not believe much has changed in that regard." Jack had the feeling Teal'c was implying something about him.

"Sure. But we're coming back." Teal'c eyed him pointedly. "Later." Jack was still getting "the look." "Tomorrow," he grunted reluctantly and Teal'c, with the merest shadow of a smirk dancing on his lips, finally looked away.

"So we're not coming back until tomorrow," Jonas repeated, trying to confirm Jack and Teal'c's conversation.

"Yep," Jack shrugged. "All right campers, let's head back."

- oOoOoOo -

"What do you _mean_ you don't know where she is?" Sam groaned in exasperation. Ariana was asleep so Sam had assumed she could go and find Shoshanah to tell her what she meant by Raevyn and her missing Sam. What did she—they?—know? If Raevyn did know anything, she was very skilled at concealing it.

"Shashanah just said she was going out. She wanted me to help you when you needed it. That's all she told me. Wouldn't say anything else." She patted Sam's shoulder. "Don't worry. She does this. Uses the chappa'ai to visit a neighboring planet, I mean. She'll be gone a month at the most."

"_I_ don't recall her ever leaving like this," Sam pointed out.

"It's an annual trip. She wasn't back long before you showed up. The only reason she didn't leave sooner than now was because she knew her assisstance would be needed."

Sam's eyes narrowed. "Why does she leave?" she asked suspiciously.

"Some people aren't like you. They don't know about Kheb, or if they do, where it's located. A handful of people need Enlightenment. Sometimes she can find them and sometimes she can't. Last time, as you well know, no one came back with her." Raevyn shrugged, her eyes wide and innocent.

"If people come back then why am I the only other person besides you two?"

"They move on. It takes a certain person to become dedicated to the path. I'm not one of them. I stay for Shoshanah. She tells me she'd be fine alone but . . . she's my last living blood-relative. Besides Ariana, of course, but she's going with you when—" Raevyn's eyes widened further and she clamped a hand over her mouth.

_Ah ha!_ "So you _do_ know something," Sam accused. To think Raevyn actually had her convinced of ignorance! "When what? What's going to happen?" she pleaded. She felt she had a right to know the goings on in her future. That and her curiosity had gotten the better of her.

"Shoshanah swore me to secrecy," Raevyn shook her head furiously, removing her hand. "She said Oma told her it was important."

"Oma?" repeated Sam, surprised. What did Oma Desala have to do with . . . whatever was going to happen?

"Shanah didn't tell me much. I think it's safe to say she said you couldn't interfere. If you knew, you'd try to-to . . . I'm sorry. I really can't say. You need to stay in the dark because certain events need to happen that won't if you interfere. We know you wouldn't mean any harm, but Oma isn't willing to take the risk."

"_Why?"_ demanded Sam. "What is so important that I . . . I—" She cut herself off to scowl at Raevyn, who was gazing at her in sympathy.

"I really do wish I could tell you," Raevyn said, "but if Oma herself is adamant about something, then . . . ." She drifted off, letting Sam fill in the gap.

"I don't even get a little hint?" Sam asked half-heartedly, recognizing an uphill battle.

"Um, it's . . . big?" Raevyn said, smiling.

The corners of Sam's mouth twitched. "So let me get this straight: I'm leaving, but you can't say why or where to because it'll mess up some grand scheme Oma can see coming?"

Raevyn shrugged. "If you want to word it that way."

"Does that mean I have to stay on Kheb. I _can't_ go _anywhere_ else until this thing unfolds?"

Raevyn thought for a moment. "Yes," she said slowly, still thinking.

Sam's brow furrowed. "Can you give me a time frame?"

"Oh, soon. Within the next month or so." Raevyn's expression loosened. "I think that if you want more answers, you should speak with Oma." As soon as she spoke, a muffled fussy wail made its way out from the bed chambers.

"I think I will. Later," Sam sighed and hurried to Ariana.

- oOoOoOo -

The cool night breeze whipped Jack's face as he took another sip of beer and gazed through his telescope. The neighbors weren't doing anything interesting; eating dinner, controlling squalling toddlers, having a good time in general. He was bored with watching them, so he settled for trying to find planets. So far he'd only seen Saturn, Mars, and Venus. The ones he was dying to see were too far for his primitive telescope to pick up.

He sighed and downed the rest of his Miller Light.

It had been three weeks since he and his team had discovered Daniel was alive and well on Vis Uban. They hadn't spoken to Daniel in two weeks. He still didn't want to return to Earth, but he kept everything Jack, Teal'c, and Jonas had brought.

Suddenly, his cell phone buzzed.

"O'Neill," he said, after flipping it open and recognizing the number as belonging to the SGC.

"_Jack?"_ It was General Hammond.

"Uh, yeah . . . yes, sir?"

"_You might want to come to my office. _Now_."_ Something in the general's tone made Jack think he should hurry.

"On my way. O'Neill out." He slammed the phone shut and wobbled uncertainly as he stood up. _Shouldn't have had the beer,_ he thought. He sobered slightly, remembering the general's very serious tone of voice, and stumbled downstairs and out the door. He barely remembered to grab his keys and lock his front door.

The Explorer rumbled to as start and he managed to back out with careful precision. The drive to the mountain was very difficult, but Jack was able to maneuver his way without too much trouble.

Security let him through immediately, apparently having orders to allow his truck in without stopping him. He waved briefly, not wanting both hands off the wheel for long.

He found a parking spot, turned off the engine, yanked the keys out of the ignition, and raced straight for the nearest elevators. After what seemed like hours, the doors finally opened on the correct floor and he sped towards the general's office.

Airman and scientists dodged out of the way, slamming themselves into the wall in some cases. Jack didn't care. As soon as he reached General Hammond's door, he threw it open, not bothering to wait for admittence. Inside was what he least expected to find.

Daniel was anxiously pacing next to the star map, stopping only when he saw Jack. Teal'c and General Hammond were seated across from each other at Hammond's desk.

"Sir?" Jack panted.

"Doctor Jackson has some . . . news," General Hammond said, looking torn between excitement and nervousness.

Only when Jack spared Daniel a second glance did he see that the younger man had shed his Vis Uban garb for BDUs.

"What's changed?" he asked, keeping bitterness out of his voice. He learned his lesson all too well from Carter.

"I remember," Daniel said. "I kept looking over the photos and everything. I began remembering. But there was something about Sam that kept bothering me. That's why I stayed out of contact. If I was aroud you, my memories of you guys would come back the strongest. I spent days looking at Sam's picture, hoping I could remember what it was that was so important."

"I take it you did," Jack asked, beginning to catch Daniel's excitement. He glanced over to Teal'c and saw that he, too, looked excited. For Teal'c anyways.

Daniel smiled. "There was just something at the edge of my mind and I couldn't let it go. I had a lot of theories about why I found her so important for that time and"—his eyes became distant, thinking back—"_I know where she is."_ He shook himself out of his trance. "I knew where she was when I was ascended and for some reason I was able to remember on Vis Uban."

"So where is she?" Jack asked, shocked.

"Kheb."

- oOoOoOo -

Sam gently rocked Ariana in her arms, humming a lullaby. Ever since her last conversation with Shoshanah—or Shanah, as Raevyn had recently taken to calling her—Sam noticed her understanding of Ariana slowly increasing. She could differenciate between Ariana's cries and knew how to comfort her or lull her to sleep.

She smiled and lightly stroked Ariana's tuft of brown hair. Ariana stirred slightly in her sleep but refused to wake up. Feeling restless, she quickly but gently placed Ariana in her cradle and covered her up, before sneaking out.

Raevyn was attempting to meditate, so Sam did her best to avoid the central room, taking the back way out of the temple instead. Her feet pulled her toward the path that'd take her to the stargate. Not knowing what else to do, she just let them take her where they may.

It was nearing Oma's approximate deadline and Sam still knew nothing more than she had a few weeks ago. She'd decided to play the reluctant good girl, not that she hadn't tried to talk with Oma first, of course. Her attempts were in vain. Oma never appeared to allay her curiosity. She could only find comfort in the knowledge that she'd find out in about a month or so, according to Raevyn.

The tree leaves danced in the warm wind that surrounded her. She closed her eyes, soaking it in. Opening them again, she recognized exactly how close she was to the gate. She guessed the distance to be about twenty meters before she reached the clearing that nestled the gate.

As she slowly stepped towards the clearing, pulled by an unseen force, a familiar sound hit her ears. At first she thought she was imagining the sounds of an activating stargate, but the clanks and bangs shattered the redundant noise of the forest.

She scowled. It had to be Shoshanah. Forgetting her easy pace, she jogged for the clearing as the wormhole stablized. As soon as Shoshanah emerged, Sam was going to give her a piece of her mind.

Anything she might have said died on her lips as soon as she saw who was in the clearing. All she could do was stop and stare at SG-1, who was having a similar reaction to _her_ sudden appearance.

She opened her mouth to say something, but all that came out was a strangled noise. Daniel was there, too.

"Carter," the colonel rasped.

"S-Sir," she managed to stammer. "I-I don't understand."

"It was all Daniel," Jack shrugged.

She turned her attantion to Daniel. "You retook human form," she said curiously. "Why?"

"Broke a few rules," Daniel grimaced.

"Oh, is that all," she smiled crookedly. Then she noticed the fourth member standing behind the others uncertainly. "Hi, I'm—"

"Major Samantha Carter," he interupted. "I'm Jonas Quinn. Doctor Jackson's temporary replacement."

"Um, come on. There's some people you should meet," Sam said, leading the way back to the temple. Her heart pounded irratically in her chest. Her team was on Kheb. Daniel wasn't dead. They had a new member. Jack wasn't being hostile toward her. She was so stunned to see them; she had expected Shoshanah.

The walk back was silent, each wrapped up in their own thoughts. Before Sam knew it, they were at the temple and understanding hit her. Whatever it was that Oma was so concerned about had to do with SG-1 finding her.

Raevyn marched out holding Ariana, pausing minutely when she saw Sam with a group of strangers. Sam heard Jack's sharp intake of breath. She wondered vaguely if her recognized Raevyn's resemblance to Zeus. It was strange to think of Jaesin as Zeus, even if she'd never truly known the former.

Raevyn's brow was furrowed with confusion. "Who are these people? Not Shanah's."

"The reason Oma didn't want me leaving, I'm guessing," Sam shrugged.

A smile appeared on Raevyn's face. "Welcome to Kheb. I'm Raevyn. And this," she said, handing the baby to Sam, "is Ariana."

Sam gently bounced Ariana, who was fascinated with the four strangers in front of her. Her blue-green eyes were wide with wonder. Shyly, she ducked her head into Sam's shoulder. Sam smiled slightly.

"So this is—" Jack began.

"Yeah," interrupted Sam, not really wanting to hear how he would have ended his sentence. She handed Ariana to Daniel, who was holding his arms out for her. Ariana glared briefly at him before grabbing a string on his vest. She gummed it but decided it didn't taste very good and spit it out.

He smiled. "My turn," Jack announced, glancing at Sam for permission. She nodded cautiously, barely daring to hope he was trying to make amends in his own way.

"Ah, right," Daniel said, tearing his gaze away from Ariana. "I'm Daniel Jackson. This is Colonel Jack O'Neill, Teal'c, and Jonas Quinn."

Comprehension was beginning to dawn on Sam. She recalled Shoshanah telling her how she and Raevyn would miss Sam, and she now knew why. Meeting Raevyn's eye, she saw the same understanding. "I'll wait for Shoshanah." Raevyn nodded sadly. "If that's okay with you," Sam said to Jack.

"If what's okay?" he asked, passing Ariana to Teal'c who very gently took her and rested her in the crook of his arm.

"Going back to Earth . . . after saying good-bye to Raevyn and Shoshanah," Sam explained.

"Oh?" Jack said, drawing out the word.

"Jaesin, ah, Zeus's sisters."

"I thought we were done refering to him that way," Raevyn said, making a face.

"Right."

"Actually," Jack said, "could we, as your friends, have an explanation?"

"As long as you update me on the past year," Sam said.

---------------------------------------

Sam sat back, haviong just briefed her friends on the past few years. The sun was setting and she was worried about SG-1 missing a check-in, but Jack assured her that they weren't due to report until the next morning.

Jack, with some assisstance from Teal'c and Jonas, told her everything from Mark's finding out about the project up until just after the mission to Abydos, where Daniel took over. He explained how the Others had forced him to descend and his struggle to regain his memories.

"And I suddenly just knew where you were," he finished. "So here we are."

They were sitting in the dining room, picking at the remains of their dinner. Raevyn had retired for bed early, taking Ariana with her.

She took a drink of water. "Here you are," she echoed, setting the glass down. "I _am_ welcome to go back, aren't I?" she asked, tracing the top of her goblet with her fingertip.

"Well, General Hammond doesn't know we found you yet, but I'm pretty sure he won't mind," Jack answered.

"How's Dad and Mark?" she asked. Though they'd been brought up, no one had bothered to elaborate on the well-being of her family.

"Both were alerted as soon as I told General Hammond where you were," Daniel said.

"We didn't keep in touch much. Mark calls periodically to ask if we found anything new about you and there was the occational mission with your dad. Other than that," Jack shrugged, letting his meaning sink in.

Sam yawned widely. "Sorry," she said. "Ariana's been restless the past few nights."

"That's fine," said Jack, getting up. "Night campers." Everyone slowly dispersed in the direction of the guest rooms Raevyn had showed them earlier until just Teal'c and Sam were left.

"'Night, Teal'c," Sam said warmly. She too started to walk out.

"Samantha Carter." She stopped, surprised at Teal'c's use of her first name.

"Yeah?" Teal'c came forward to hug her.

"It has been very relieving to know you are well," he said. "I am sorry."

"For what?"

"I feel that I am responsible for everything that has happened."

"Teal'c, I'm glad everything worked out the way it did. I'm happy. I can't see this situation coming out any better. I have a daughter, a family, I'm going home. There's nothing more I could ask for."

Sam saw his face loose a lot of tension and his shoulders droop minisculely in relief. She patted his arm and went to her room, eager to see the next day.

* * *

_Okay, here's the thing . . . initially, I was going to cram more into this, but it's late, I'm tired, and it's been exactly one year since this thing was first submitted (I wanted to sort of commemorate that, I guess). I wanted this to be the last chapter, but right now I just want to be able to drag myself into bed. So I'm adding an epilogue. Oh, and any spelling errors are due to an exhausted me and a crappy keyboard. Other than acknowledgement of this being a very AU 'Fallen,' that's about it._

_R&R_


	16. Epilogue

Images raced through his mind with such rapidness that he caught only a few glimpses. What he did see was enough to make him want to retch with the horror of his actions. Granted, he personally didn't do anything, but knowing what his body had been forced to do was painful enough.

His stomach was tight with a thousand tense knots as the nightmarish montage continued relentlessly. Unfortunately, the final image was the worst.

She was so beautiful, the way her short, pale hair caught the light. The way her deep, passionate blue eyes shone with a whirlwind of emotion. Her face was alight with a smile he'd never seen her wear in real life. It made all the light surrounding her look dim. He reached out to touch her cheek and the image shattered, leaving him with the memories of what he'd done to her.

No matter how hard he fought, the dam was broke; he could see and _feel_ every curve and contour of her body. Her sweet scent—an interesting combination of peaches and cinamon, something he never knew he'd like—and her taste. He mentally squirmed. These were not thoughts he should be having. Not after what—_no_. He would _not_ think about what they'd both been forced to endure and at whose "hands."

Besides, she would never feel the same way. The only reason she even _seemed_ to like him was because of a parasite's selfish scheming.

"_Excuse me."_ He wanted to recoil at the dual tones, but, thanks to the voice, he soon became aware of what was going on outside of his mind.

The air was a bit drafty, especially, he realized with some discomfort, since he was wearing virtually nothing. He was lying on what felt like a giant stone; it was as hard as one. Blearily, he opened his eyes but closed them immediately at the bright light and swirling room. Warily, he tried to open them once more and forced himself to watch the moving room stablize. When it stopped, his head was spinning. He rubbed his temples in an attempt to calm his rattled mind down.

When he could see again, he wanted to sink into whatever it was he rested on. A black room with—surprisingly—dim lights met his horrified gaze. Unfortunately, it's what the walls signified that sent his thudding heart to his throat. They were crystaline; a sure sign he was deep underground in the maze of Tok'ra tunnels.

_"Easy,"_ the voice commanded. He blanched and became aware of a slight tingling sensation. He was definitely inside the Tok'ra tunnels, lying in a room with a female Tok'ra hovering nearby.

"What do you want?" he rasped angrily, green eyes narrowing. After what happened to him, he hated the Tok'ra as fiercely as he hated the Goa'uld.

_"Is that how you thank the one who restored your life?"_ she demanded mockingly.

He sat up in the direction of the voice. The Tok'ra was a scantily clad woman with her light blonde hair pulled back. She held a notepad of some sort in one hand and a writing utensil resting gently in the other. He glared in response to her question.

_"My name is Anise,"_ she said. _"I already know who you are. The Tok'ra have long memories."_

He fought the urge to snort rudely. Instead, he shrugged. This seemed to frustrate Anise.

Suddenly, her head bowed and he found himself looking at the host. "I'm sorry," she frowned. "Anise can be—"

"I don't give a damn." A phrase he learned from—he couldn't even bear to think the name. "Just tell me what I'm doing here...and why."

"As you wish," Anise's host replied. "First off, I am Freya. After you...that is, your body," she amended, "was brought here, I took custody of it. Anise wanted to study the effects of the poison...that _is _how both of you died..." He nodded, furiously trying to block his memories of the event. "Anise got her results and wanted to speak with Zeus's host. We...had our ways of bringing you back," she explained vaguely. "We did it without permission and had to create a hidden room within our quarters. No one save Anise and myself know you are here."

"I'd hate to disappoint you," Jaesin growled mockingly, "but I don't help people who imprison me _in my own body_."

"We did not imp—"

"Do you think I care? I was a slave. I had to live every damn minute of torture he..." Jaesin shook his head vehemently, purging every memory flung his way. Denial was the only way to keep him thinking coherently. "I will not help you."

_"But you are already."_ Anise was back in control. She was smirking.

Jaesin folded his arms. "I do nothing until I get more clothes on." He shuddered internally, feeling violated.

Anise smiled alluringly. Jaesin scowled.

_"As you desire."_ Jaesin didn't miss the last word and the way she purred it. His scowl deepened.

_"But first..."_ Anise stepped uncomfortably close to him. _"First, you _will_ tell me what I want to know."_

_**fin**_

* * *

_Eh, not the best epilogue but my muse and myself are about to drop from exhaution. I'd been working on this idea for an epilogue for a short while, so it's in a fairly raw form. Ah well, it leaves an opening for my very mini sequel idea._

_Oh, and I did try to follow advice given to me and I plan on fixing some spelling mistakes and improving early chapters. If anyone has any advice or constructive criticism, it'll be very welcome._

_I truly appreciate all the comments and help you guys (the wonderful reviewers) have given me and my muse. 92 comments (thus far) is more than I expected. You have no idea how grateful I am._

_Hugs!_

**R&R**


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